Exchanged
by TayaHearts
Summary: Carlin is only in the States for a four-month exchange student program when the outbreak hits. Now, armed only with her two friends, she has to survive in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people. Rated for language.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, this is my first Walking Dead fic! I really, really loved my OCs for this story, so there's a chance I might right a sequel just so I can use them again! As a warning, the language can get pretty foul. Also, this is sort of a mash-up of the show and the comic, so there are characters from both and characters that are entirely mine. Also, I've heard that they're going to be incorporating some of the comic into season 2 of the show (thus far the show hasn't been much like the comic at all) so you might recognize some of the stuff in season 2! XD**

**As always, I don't own anything that's not mine. I hope you enjoy and please review! **

There was a sudden banging on the door, loud, shocking in the silence of the room. Carlin's eyes shot open at once. Her eyes flickered briefly to the digital clock sitting on one of the desks across the room. It was a quarter after three. Who would be there at such a late hour?

Underneath her, Nary got out of the bottom bunk, cursing to herself. She'd only been in bed for an hour, having come stumbling home drunk yet again. She pulled her nightshirt down over her cotton panties and yanked open the door. "What?" she demanded crossly.

The girl who pushed herself into the room was an identical replica of Nary, down to the big blue eyes and ash blond hair. Kiri, Nary's twin. She lived on the next floor up, but she spent so much time in Carlin and Nary's room that she was like another roommate.

"Have you heard what's going on?" Kiri demanded, sweeping across the room with uncharacteristic determination and switching the television on. Carlin propped herself up on her pillow to see.

The news was on, which was surprising considering the hour. The newscaster had bags under her eyes and gave the audience a grim look. "Two more Orono hospitals have been shut down in the last few hours," she reported. "Everyone is advised to stay home and wash your hands as often as-"

"You came banging down our door at this ungodly hour just to show us this?" Nary complained over the news report, reaching for her half-empty pack of American Spirits. "They've been saying this garbage for a week now! The entire campus has already been vaccinated!"

Kiri shook her head, looking troubled. "The vaccine doesn't work."

"What are you talking about?" Carlin demanded, and the twins looked up as if surprised to find her there. "What do you mean the vaccine doesn't work?"

"They just carted off an entire floor of Downing Hall to the hospital," Kiri explained darkly. "All of them infected. I saw them from my window. They were trying to bite the RAs helping them. It was awful."

Nary suddenly didn't look so belligerent. "What are we going to do?"

"I'm going home," Kiri announced. "A college campus is a hotspot for outbreaks like this. We'd be much safer at home with Mom and Dad."

Her sister seemed to think about it for a moment. "Fine. I'm coming too. Just let me pack some things."

"Fine. I'll be back in a few minutes." Kiri turned and left, pulling the door closed behind her.

Nary immediately grabbed a duffel bag from the top of the closet and began cramming the contents of the dresser drawers into it. She glanced briefly at Carlin. "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know," Carlin admitted, watching her roommate pack with an ever-growing sense of alarm. She didn't say it out loud, but she didn't have anywhere to go. Her home was halfway across the world and the airports had been shut down for the past week due to the outbreak.

Nary hesitated, her short, bluntly-cut blond hair falling into one big blue eye, still surrounded with smeared eyeliner from her outing earlier. She knew that Carlin was alone. "Come with us," she finally said. "Kiri's right; it's definitely safer than being here."

"I don't know..." Carlin murmured, glancing at the photograph of her family taped to the wall.

"Come on," Nary insisted. "My dad used to be in the military, and my mom's a nurse. It's the safest place to go. I promise."

Carlin threw back her covers. "Okay." It didn't take her long to pack her belongings. She'd only brought one suitcase to America anyway. She was pulling a pair of blue jeans on when Kiri reappeared, her own duffel bag slung over her shoulder.

"Let's go," she said shortly.

The halls were crowded with other students with the same idea, bags in tow, car keys in hand. One of the floor's RAs was standing in front of the elevator, looking quite frantic. "You can't leave," she was saying, almost apologetically. "They've quarantined the campus. Nobody's allowed to leave!"

"How could they quarantine us?" somebody was shouting angrily. There was nothing short of a mob in the lobby before the elevator. "They can't do that!" Other girls shouted their agreement, some looking quite violent.

"Come on," Nary muttered to Carlin and Kiri. The three of them slipped out of the quickly growing crowd over to the stairwell, which was also being guarded by an RA. The stairwell and the elevator were the only exits off the floor.

Kiri grimaced at the riot in front of the stairwell. "Fuck this," she declared, and she reached out and pulled the fire alarm. The shouting stopped for a moment as the alarms went off, nearly deafening them. Nary gave the RA in front of the stairwell a firm shove, sending her to the tiled floor, and the three of them were through the door, along with about a dozen other girls.

There were security officers posted around the main entrances of the building, but they hadn't been expecting such a rush of students, and Carlin, Kiri, and Nary were past them before they even knew what was happening. Then they were in the parking lot and Nary was struggling with the keys to the black Ford Explorer the twins shared.

The parking lot was a mass of bodies and vehicles all screaming and honking at one another, so even when the vehicle was in drive it was impossible to go anywhere. Nary laid on the wheel. "Come on!" she shouted.

Carlin screamed as a face slammed up against her window. The skin was a mottled, blue-purple color and the eyes had a filmy sheen of white over them. It was a girl she recognized from the dorm, but it wasn't the same girl. Not anymore, at least.

Nary gaped at the girl, horrified. However drunk she might have been from her partying that night, she was instantly sobered. With a grim look of determination, she put the SUV into four wheel drive and slammed on the gas. The Explorer bounced over the median, sending all three girls into the air. Then it hit the ground on the other side and Kiri and Carlin were slammed into their doors.

"Put on your seat belts," Nary warned grimly, pushing the gas pedal all the way down.

**A short first chapter, I know, but the next one will be longer. I hope you enjoyed it! Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow, reviews right off the bat! I'm super glad you like it! Special thanks to Belladonna and SaraLostInes for their wonderful reviews! This chapter is much longer, so I hope you enjoy it! **

The three of them drove about an hour outside the Orono city limits and then pulled off the highway to try and get some sleep and wait for daylight. They stayed parked in a deserted parking lot for a few hours, though none of them slept much. Then they hit the road again.

The twins were originally from Florida, which is why they still lived in the dorms even though they were seniors. Nary insisted over and over again that it was only a twenty-six hour drive, but it took them four days to get there, not only because many of the major highways were shut down or congested but also because they had to find routes around the major cities instead of through them.

Eventually, on the morning of the fourth day, the Explorer drove past a battered-looking sign welcoming them to Groveland, Florida. The town itself was deserted. It had an old-fashioned sort of feel to it that would have been nice if the storefronts hadn't been destroyed by looters when the outbreak got really bad.

"I hope Mom and Dad are okay," Kiri murmured from the backseat of the Explorer as they passed a small grocery store with the front windows busted out. Nary didn't respond verbally, only tightened her hold on the steering wheel grimly. Their cell phones had stopped working almost as soon as they'd left the University of Maine's campus, and all the television and radio stations had been down too. They had no way of knowing what was happening.

Carlin had never met the Clarks before. She knew that Mr. Clark was a retired Special Forces Communications Sergeant with the U.S. army and that Mrs. Clark was a nurse at the South Lake Hospital a few miles out from Groveland, but other than that she was completely in the dark.

They lived in an old three-story farmhouse situated on a wide expanse of land, several acres at least. The house was painted a pale yellow with red shutters on the windows and a long wraparound porch with a swing that swayed in the breeze. Carlin could just make out a faded red barn down the hill behind the house as Nary pulled the Explorer behind an ancient blue pickup truck in the gravel drive.

"Hello?" Kiri called, climbing out of the car with the long skirt of her dress swishing around her ankles. "Mom? Dad?"

The front door opened and a big man appeared, holding a shotgun in his hands. Though he had clearly been in good shape at one point, he was starting to get something of a belly. His face split into a relieved grin behind his formidable mustache and he lowered the gun. "Channary! Kiri! Thank god you're all right!"

Both girls leaped up the porch steps and flung themselves into their father's arms.

It wasn't long before the commotion drew Mrs. Clark and the twins' younger brother Samay. Mrs. Clark abruptly burst into tears and hugged her daughters tightly. Carlin stood back in the drive next to the Explorer and waited awkwardly for someone to remember to notice her.

Eventually Mr. Clark looked up over the barrel of his shotgun and saw her. "And who's this?" he asked.

"Oh, this is Carly," Nary said apologetically. "She's my roommate from college. She's a foreign exchange student and she didn't have anywhere to go, so we brought her with us."

"You poor thing." Mrs. Clark was down the steps and enveloping Carlin in one of her hugs before Carlin even knew what was happening. "Why don't you lot come inside? I'm sure you're exhausted and hungry. I'll make some supper."

She led the way into the cool interior of the house, where none of the lights seemed to work anymore. Kiri followed, frowning. "But Mom, shouldn't we be leaving? The entire town is deserted!"

"I know," Mrs. Clark agreed sadly, going over to the pantry and peering into it thoughtfully. "Everyone ransacked everything before they left. But we're safe here. We're far enough out from the city that not many of the dead ones come out here."

"Plus we've got the fence around the entire property," Sam pointed out. "That keeps them away pretty good too."

"Pretty _well_, Samay," Mr. Clark corrected, leaning his shotgun in the corner and lighting one of the many camping lanterns that were sitting about. "But he's right. We don't get many out here. And the few that do stumble in are easy enough to take care of."

Kiri frowned, taking a seat at the long kitchen table. "It still seems dangerous."

"It is," Mr. Clark admitted, sitting next to her. "But we've boarded up all the windows and the only door that still opens is the front one, which we lock and barricade at night. It's safe enough here. Plus, even though we don't have electricity anymore, the stove is gas and still works. Plus we've got the old icehouse out back that we've been using instead of a refrigerator."

"What about water?" Nary demanded, picking at the black fitted t-shirt she was wearing. "Does that still work? Because I haven't showered in four days."

Mrs. Clark smiled as she grabbed an enormous can of baked beans from the pantry. "Of course. We have well water, remember? That's why the water pressure has never been very good. Why don't you three get cleaned up and I'll have dinner ready in no time. Sam, will you run out to the ice house and get that chicken?"

"Wait," Mr. Clark stopped his son before he could get too far, pointing to the shotgun in the corner. "Don't go out there unprotected."

Sam grinned and, grabbing the shotgun, proceeded out the front door.

"You can go first," Kiri told her sister generously. "Carly and I can carry the bags in from the car."

The two of them went back out to the car, where Kiri opened the hatch and they grabbed all the duffel bags and backpacks. Then the blond led the way up the stairs. There were four bedrooms, and Kiri entered the one closest to the stairs. "You can bunk with me," she offered. "Nary isn't very nice about sharing her room."

Kiri's bedroom reflected her personality perfectly, Carlin thought. The walls were painted a bright yellow color, and the bedspread was tie-dyed. There were posters of bands Carlin had never heard of plastered all over the walls, even on the ceiling. The windows, which hadn't been boarded up since they were on the second floor, were draped with some sort of hot pink tulle material that floated in the breeze coming through the screen.

Nary took about twenty minutes in the shower, leaving Carlin and Kiri to lounge on the futon bed and look through the twins' old high school yearbooks. Though now their hairstyles were completely differently, when they were younger even their hair had been the same.

Kiri let Carlin shower after Nary, so she took some clean clothes from her suitcase and went down the hall to the bathroom. It was big for a guest bath, and well-lit with a camping lantern sitting on the counter. She stripped off her dirty clothes, which she hadn't had a chance to change for two days now, and climbed into the shower.

It felt fantastic to wash away four days' worth of accumulated grime, and it was with a great deal of reluctance that she finally turned off the taps and climbed out. She got dressed in her clean clothes, wrapped her long hair up in a towel, and padded barefoot back to Kiri's room so her friend could go get cleaned up.

Carlin was sitting on the edge of the futon-bed, trying to wring out as much water as she could from her hair, when Kiri returned from her shower, wrapped in an enormous towel. "Ah, that felt good," she declared, shutting the bedroom door and throwing off her towel. Kiri had never been modest.

Carlin watched her for a moment as she pulled on a pair of panties, following the curve of her suntanned stomach. "Are you going to tell your parents?" she asked after a moment.

Kiri paused, putting one hand absently on her slightly distended abdomen. "I don't know. I mean, I know I need to. But I don't want to."

"They'll find out eventually," Carlin, who was a year older, warned her. "You're only going to get bigger."

The blond shrugged. "I guess I'll deal with it when they do." She hadn't come right out and told Carlin that she was pregnant. She hadn't told anybody, not even Nary. Carlin knew it was because nobody approved of Kiri's boyfriend. He was a drug-addict who had dropped out of college after one semester and had been in and out of jail ever since. Even Carlin didn't like him, and she usually didn't judge people.

Once they had gotten dressed, they joined Nary, Sam, and Mr. and Mrs. Clark downstairs in the kitchen. The sun had sunk even lower by then, so there was no light coming through the boarded up windows now. More lanterns had been lit, bathing the kitchen in a warm sort of glow.

"Did the girls ever tell you how Dan and I met?" Mrs. Clark asked once they had all sat down and were passing around plates of chicken, rice, and baked beans (and a vegetable mix for Kiri, who had been a vegan for most of her life).

Carlin shook her head politely, accepting a generous portion of chicken. After living on nothing but what they could swipe from ransacked gas stations, which consisted mostly of sugary sweets and caffeinated beverages, she was ravenous. "No, ma'am, they didn't."

"We met in Cambodia." Mrs. Clark smiled at her husband. Even after thirty years of marriage, it was obvious they were still in love. "Dan was stationed there during the Cambodian Incursion during the seventies. I was working as a nurse with a group of missionaries near Phumi Phset. We reconnected after we both got back to the States. It was so romantic."

Nary rolled her eyes. "That's why we all got stuck with Cambodian names," she explained. "Mom and Dad thought it was _cute_."

"Your names are all lovely," Mrs. Clark chuckled.

Despite everything that had happened in the past week, Carlin felt suddenly like smiling. The world had gone to shit in a matter of days, but at least here there was a small slice of normal. Here it felt like things might actually get better.

Weeks passed, bringing September to a close. Life at the Clark house was pleasant, even without the use of electricity. Because the house was so old, having been built before electricity was common, it wasn't hard to get by. There was a garden out back that they took turns tending, even Sam, and both Mr. and Mrs. Clark were eager to share their knowledge. They taught the girls how to shoot guns, showing them where Mr. Clark's gun cabinet was located, and how to tend to minor injuries.

It was the second week of October when Mrs. Clark, who was quite observant, noticed that something was off about Kiri. Mr. Clark and Sam were out in the garden behind the house, seeing if any of the lima beans were ready to harvest. Carlin was in the living room with the twins and their mother, reading a Vera Stanley Alder book she'd found on Kiri's bookshelf.

Mrs. Clark glanced up from the crossword puzzle she was doing and squinted at her daughter. Kiri typically wore loose-fitting clothes that befit her free-spirited personality, but now even they were starting to get tight around her midsection. "Kiri, are you pregnant?" she finally asked bluntly.

Kiri looked up from the bracelet she was braiding, a clipboard perched on her knee. "What are you talking about, Mom? Of course I'm not pregnant." Nary looked up from her own book, frowning.

"Let me see your belly then." It was almost a challenge.

Kiri looked like she might refuse for a moment, then she sighed and pulled her long dress all the way up to her chest. Her smooth, tanned stomach was very obviously rounded. The flower tattoo across her torso had already begun to stretch.

Mrs. Clark sighed and looked away. "My god, Kiri, how could you be so irresponsible?" Her voice cracked.

Nary seemed even more upset about it than their mother. "How could you not tell me?" she demanded. "I'm your _twin_!"

Kiri frowned and said nothing, letting her dress fall back down to cover the offending belly.

"This is no time to be having a baby!" Mrs. Clark continued angrily. "You're only twenty-two years old!"

"You had Nary and me when you were twenty-one," Kiri shot back, angry. Carlin had never heard Kiri angry before.

"That's different," her mother snapped. "I was already married. And your father isn't some waste-of-space drug addict who probably doesn't even remember your name!"

Carlin chose that moment to pointedly excuse herself, thinking that this was more of a private family matter. She heard Mrs. Clark calling for her husband as she escaped to Kiri's multicolored bedroom.

Thankfully she couldn't hear much of the argument taking place downstairs. There was a lot of shouting from everybody. Mrs. Clark was devastated. Nary was hurt at being kept out of the loop. Mr. Clark was just plain furious. From upstairs, Carlin heard him say, "The only good thing about this goddamned outbreak is that I don't have to kill the son of a bitch myself!" It wasn't long after this that Kiri appeared in the bedroom doorway, crying.

The next week was trying for all of them. The entire house was tense and Carlin felt like an outsider. She found herself spending more and more time outside of the house's safety, tending to the garden or wandering through the now abandoned barn.

She missed her own family, but she tried not to think about them. She wondered if Great Britain had gotten hit as hard as the U.S. She hoped they were safe, but she tried not to think too much. Hope, like many other things these days, was dead.

Carlin glanced up at the sky. She was in the garden, looking at individual ears of corn on the stalks to see if any were ready to pick. Though time had become irrelevant since civilization ceased to exist, she noted that the sun had very nearly set. One of the main rules of living with the Clarks was that the front door got locked at sundown. The dead ones seemed to be more active at night.

She picked up the bag containing the few ears she'd picked and headed for the front door. Mrs. Clark appeared from the kitchen as soon as the door closed behind her. "Samay?" she called eagerly. Then she saw that it was Carlin and her face fell. "Oh, it's you. Have you seen Samay?"

"No ma'am," Carlin answered apologetically. "I was just out in the garden. I haven't seen him all day."

Mrs. Clark's frown deepened. "Me neither. I'm starting to get really worried."

"I'm sure he's fine," her husband assured her, following her from the kitchen. "He's a smart kid, and he knows how to handle those creatures. He'll be okay."

But night fell soon and still he hadn't returned. So Mr. Clark organized them into groups and they each took a flashlight, rationing out their batteries, and they started out across the property in two separate directions.

Carlin found herself grouped with the twins. The three of them huddled together, each with a semi-automatic handgun in tow, and headed in the direction of the empty barn. Kiri had mentioned that it hadn't been used in decades, but that nobody had bothered to tear it down.

Nary stopped suddenly, throwing out an arm to stop Kiri and Carlin. Her face twisted into a mask of horror and disgust as she shone her light onto a group of the dead ones hunched over something, feeding hungrily. They made snapping, snarling, squelching noises as they stuffed their faces.

As the light fell on them, their heads whipped around and they caught sight of the three girls, whose still-living smell must have been quite strong. With guttural growls, they left the thing on the ground and started to advance.

Without hesitating, all three of the girls put bullets through the brains of the dead ones. They were slow-moving and easy to hit. Once they were all down, really dead this time, the girls were able to see what the things had been feeding on.

Kiri let out an anguished cry and dropped to her knees, suddenly ashen-faced. Nary turned to the side and vomited. Carlin couldn't tear her eyes away from the mess that had become of Samay Clark. His eyes were wide open, lifeless, staring up at the starry sky. His chest had been torn open and part of his intestines were trailing out of the wound.

It wasn't long before Mr. and Mrs. Clark came running, probably drawn by Kiri's cries. They stopped suddenly when they saw their son, stricken with disbelief and utter despair. Mrs. Clark began to cry, hiding her face in her husband's shoulder. Mr. Clark set his mouth grimly, his hand still on the trigger of his gun. When the body of their son began to move, it was he who put the bullet through dead-Sam's brain.

"Hurry now," Mr. Clark said grimly to his wife and the girls. "We shouldn't be out here right now." But when they turned around, they saw a whole slew of the dead ones coming towards them, fence or no. Maybe they were drawn by the gunshots or maybe they were drawn by Kiri and Mrs. Clark's sobs, but it didn't matter. They were there, and there were definitely way too many of them.

"Oh god." Nary's blue eyes got even bigger, if that was possible, as she surveyed the sheer amount of dead ones coming towards them. "What are we going to do?"

"Get to the house!" Mr. Clark shouted, giving his wife a shove towards his daughters. "Go! I'll hold them off as long as I can!"

The girls started for the house, dragging Mrs. Clark with them. "No!" Mrs. Clark shouted as her husband began unloading on the nearest dead ones. "I won't leave you, Dan! I won't!"

They heard his death screams as they vaulted up the porch steps and into the house. Mrs. Clark collapsed at once, sobbing hysterically, as Carlin and Nary bolted the door and slid the barricade in place.

It was a very long night. After feeding on Mr. Clark, the dead ones meandered over to the house. They could smell the women inside, though they couldn't get to them. They stood outside the doors and windows, moaning and beating on the doors. After a few hours they seemed to get distracted and they left, spreading out across the Clark's land.

They tried to get a few hours' of sleep, taking turns keeping watch at the front door in case anything broke through. It must have been about three o'clock in the morning when they heard the gunshot. Carlin sat straight up. She and Kiri were both in Nary's bed; they were too afraid and upset to sleep by themselves.

They vaulted down the steps at the sound, even pregnant Kiri, and stumbled into what had once been Mr. Clark's office. That's where they found Mrs. Clark, lying in an ever-expanding puddle of blood on the wooden floor, a pistol in her hand and a bullet in her brain.

There was nothing left for it then. Kiri wept constantly for three days, and Nary remained stoically silent, refusing to speak to either her sister or Carlin. They didn't leave the house, eating only from the stash in the pantry that Mr. Clark had kept stocked from the stores in downtown Groveland.

Finally, Nary broke her silence. "I've been thinking," she said. They were sitting around the kitchen table, just sitting. "We can't stay here. I think we should leave."

"And go where?" Carlin asked.

The blond shifted her weight. "We've got family who live in southern Indiana," she explained. "Aunts, uncles, cousins. All of them. I think we should go there."

"You want to go to New Harmony?" Kiri asked, looking up from the brightly-colored pattern on her peasant top. "That's like a fourteen hour drive from here."

Nary fixed her sister with a grim look. "Do you have any better ideas?"

"No."

"Then it's settled. We're going."

**This one's sort of long, but I hope nobody minds! Also, just in case you're wondering, all the characters thus far in the story are mine XD**

**Please review! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! I'm glad you guys are enjoying this so far!**

**Aku15: I will keep updating if you keep reviewing XD**

**Belladonna: Haha yeah, I think I feel absolutely horrible for writing Kiri's life to be so awful : (**

**SaraLostInes: All your questions will be answered this chapter!**

**Lucy Freebird: Read on to discover if they meet the survivors or not!**

There were still a few of the dead ones outside the house, the stubborn ones that hadn't left yet to find food elsewhere. Once the girls had all their belongings packed up (including all the food in the pantry and the weapons in the gun cabinet and anything they thought might do them some good in the long run), it was a simple matter to take care of the ones lingering around in the yard. They threw their things quickly into the back of the SUV and hopped in, locking the doors before any of the remaining dead ones could reach them. Then Nary threw the Explorer into reverse and zoomed down the driveway.

"We're running on fumes," she informed the others. "We _have_ to stop at a gas station."

Three gas stations later they still hadn't found any gas. All the pumps were bone dry, probably from when the still living people had made their frantic escape over a month ago.

"Dammit!" Nary slammed her palms against the steering wheel. She had not been a pleasant person lately. On top of the deaths of her family, she had smoked her entire marijuana stash on the way to Groveland from Orono, insisting that she had contacts back home that would hook her up again. She was also out of her American Spirit cigarettes. "What the hell are we going to do? We don't have the gas to get any further!"

Carlin chewed on her bottom lip, a habit she'd had since childhood. "I guess we're going to have to siphon gas from these cars parked along the roads. Surely some of them still have _something_."

Kiri fixed her with an open-mouthed look. "You know how to siphon gas from cars?"

"Yeah. It's simple physics, really. Let's root around in this station for an empty container and a hose we can use," Carlin suggested.

While Nary kept watch for them, her gun ready, Kiri and Carlin slipped through the gas station in search of what they needed. It took them a while, but they finally found equipment Carlin approved of and she taught the twins how to siphon the gas from other cars. They had filled up the gasoline container after siphoning from three different cars, and Carlin poured what they had collected into the Explorer's tank. Then, when they were safely back in the car, they headed out for New Harmony.

It was as slow going back up north as it had been coming down. Most of the roads were clogged with abandoned vehicles, and going through the major cities was out of the question. They spent the first night in the parking lot of a shopping center, hunkering down in the seats and trying to get some sleep. They headed out again a few hours after dawn; according to the clock on the dashboard it was eight o'clock.

Carlin fell asleep sitting in the front passenger seat about noon, her stomach grumbling. Because none of them slept well at night, they often napped during the day while Kiri and Nary took turns driving.

She awoke with a start after a particularly nasty nightmare, one about Mrs. Clark. Sweat crept down the curve of her spine despite the air conditioner going full blast. She pried her forehead off the glass window and ran her fingers through her dark hair. Even though they'd stopped for nearly twelve full hours the night before, she hadn't slept much.

Nary, perched as usual behind the wheel of the Explorer, gave her a brief look. Her face was thin, drawn. She hadn't eaten much since Groveland. "Bad dream?"

"Yeah." Carlin turned to look out the window again. They were passing monotonous fields on one side and a thick section of forest on the other. Though they passed many cars, they didn't see any signs of life.

Kiri groaned from the backseat. "Can we pull over?" she whined. "I think I'm gonna throw up."

"Fine. We're nearly out of gas again anyway," Nary sighed, pulling the Explorer over to the shoulder. Both sides of the highway were lined with abandoned cars, so they had their pick that afternoon.

Kiri pushed the door open and stumbled out before the car had even rolled to a complete stop, leaning over the grass and dry-heaving. Though her morning (or rather all day) sickness was over for the most part, the constant driving in the car tended to make her nauseas more easily.

"Whose turn is it to siphon gas?" Carlin asked, looking away as Kiri wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Yours," Nary replied immediately.

Even though she'd done it last time, Carlin didn't argue. It wasn't worth it. "Fine," she said instead, taking the empty gas container from the back of the car. "Cover me."

"Always." Nary held up her little silver pistol as a reassurance.

She stood watch, her eyes constantly scanning the horizon for any signs of movement, while Carlin crouched beside an abandoned Volvo and pried open the gas cap. She threaded her hose down into the tank and pumped, siphoning the gas into the container. They had to go to three more cars before the container was full, but then they transferred the gas into the tank of the Explorer.

Then they climbed back into the air-conditioned car and Nary turned the key in the ignition. Instead of whirring to life, there was a grumble and it refused to start. They all exchanged a worried look. Nary tried to start the car again, with similar results.

"Shit," she muttered, dropping her hands helplessly into her lap. "_Shit_."

"Why won't it start?" Kiri's voice was shrill as she leaned over the center console to peer at the dashboard.

Nary glared at her. "How the hell should I know? I don't know anything about cars! They were Dad's thing." She fell silent at once, frowning. The subject of their family had been taboo thus far, ever since Groveland.

Carlin shook her head, trying to erase the grisly images of the Clark family from her mind. "Pop the hood," she ordered. "Let me take a look." She knew a thing or two about the little European cars they drove back home. Surely American cars couldn't be that different.

Nary looked sullen as she obeyed, popping the hood with a little click. Carlin slipped out of the car and raised the hood so she could look at the engine. All she saw was a bunch of metal parts she didn't really understand and a hose with a hole in it. Well, at least she knew enough to know that a hole in a hose could be detrimental to a car's health.

"I think I found the problem," she announced grimly, closing the hood as quietly as possible. "The radiator hose has a hole in it. We're going to have to find a new one."

Nary leaned out the window, pursing her lips. "And just where do you suggest we find a new one? See an auto parts store just lying around? And even if we did find one, do you know how to replace the damn thing? Because I sure as hell don't."

"Quit being so snappy," Kiri ordered firmly. "Why don't we just take one of these abandoned cars that still have the keys in it?"

"Because this is _my_ car!" Nary whined, slamming her hand against the steering wheel again. "I'm not just abandoning it. Plus it's a lot bigger than all those compact cars!"

"It's _our_ car," Kiri reminded her. "And it guzzles gas."

Her sister remained unyielding. "I don't care. We're not abandoning my car. We've just got to find a way to fix it."

Carlin was used to this sisterly bickering. It had happened even before the outbreak, but things were at an all time low now. "Look over there," she distracted them, pointing to a set of tire tracks that led off the road into a section of the forest about thirty yards to their left.

The twins looked. "All I see are some stupid tire tracks," Nary muttered.

"The tire treads are Firestone ATXs, the same as the ones on your car," Carlin explained. "There was a big deal about it several years back because the tires didn't actually fit the Explorer very well. If whatever made those tracks has the same tires, there's a good chance they'll have at least a similar hose."

Nary wasn't quite as annoyed anymore. "What makes you think it didn't just drive right through those woods?"

"The trees are too dense," Carlin answered, twisting her dark hair off her sweaty neck and securing it with an elastic hairband. "It couldn't have gotten too far. I'm going to see if I can find it."

Kiri frowned, leaning out the window. "By yourself? It's dangerous, Carly. We should all go together."

"No, it'll be safer if I go alone," she assured the twins, mostly for a chance to have a moment alone. Since leaving Orono over a month ago, she had spent nearly every moment with Kiri and Nary. It would be nice to have a few moments' peace. She hefted the aluminum bat she'd gotten from the Clark's house onto her shoulder. "You two wait here. Honk the horn if anything happens and I'll come straight back."

Kiri still didn't like it, but both she and her sister were silent as Carlin gave a little wave and started for the woods.

Even though it was halfway through October by this point, the temperature still soared into the nineties. Carlin was unused to this kind of stuffy, muggy heat. Back home it would have been very cold by now. Even in the heart of summer it rarely reached the seventies. She sighed as her thoughts drifted back to her home in Portree and her family there.

When the outbreak had first been reported, she'd used up all the minutes on her calling card immediately, checking up on her family. Now she tried not to think of them.

She forced herself to focus as she passed the first of the trees. The forest was definitely dangerous. At least out in the open one could see anything, alive or dead, coming for miles. In the woods, the trees blocked nearly everything from view. She raised her bat higher and crept further into the dense forest, following the tire tracks. She was used to being quiet and made hardly a sound.

She had gone maybe forty yards in - far enough for the Explorer to be blocked from view - when she heard a twig crack somewhere behind her. She froze, straining her ears. The sounds coming towards her were soft and slow but unmistakable: footsteps.

With a cry she whirled around, swinging the bat as hard as she could at the thing coming up behind her. It raised its bare arm and blocked the blow, though she had definitely swung the bat hard enough to crush a dead one's skull. She gaped past the arm, seeing that the thing wasn't a dead one at all but a living, breathing man who looked quite put out at having been attacked.

The man was much taller than Carlin was, quite burly, wearing a sleeveless plaid shirt and a pair of mud-spattered jeans. He had several days' worth of stubble on his square-shaped face and close-cropped hair. He was probably in his mid forties if she had to guess, and he had an unpleasant leer in his blue eyes.

He looked her up and down, still holding the bat at bay, and his lip curled back in a sneer. "Well, looky what we got here," he crooned in a thick southern accent. It was even more pronounced than the twins', Carlin noted. "What's a pretty little thing like you doing out here all alone?" He reached up a dirty hand to stroke the side of her face.

She jerked away at once, trying to withdraw the bat so she'd have a weapon to protect herself, but the man plucked it easily out of her hands and threw it aside, where she couldn't reach it.

After the initial shock, Carlin hadn't really feared the dead ones. She'd avoided them, certainly, but they were slow and for the most part easy to avoid. This man was a completely different matter. He was truly dangerous and she was afraid. She took several steps away from him.

He seemed to think she was funny. He threw back his head and laughed, a deep, throaty sound that was altogether unpleasant. "What's the matter, dollface?" he cooed. "I ain't gonna hurt you."

"Get away from me!" she snapped, glaring at him. She was too far in the woods for Kiri or Nary to hear her if she screamed; she was completely on her own now.

He chuckled again, advancing on her with big, heavy strides. She turned to run, but he caught her easily by her long hair and jerked her backwards. With a cry, her feet flew out from underneath her and she landed on her back. The man was on top of her at once, using the weight of his body to keep her pinned down. He used one hand to capture her wrists painfully above her head and the other to unzip her denim shorts.

Grunting and screaming, she writhed and wriggled, trying to get away from him. He had his hand down the front of her shorts, cupping her fiercely, when she managed to get her knee free enough to jam it into his groin. He groaned and relaxed his hold on her momentarily, and she took the opportunity to push him off. She reversed their positions, straddling him now. She drew back her fist and punched him as hard as she could in the face, feeling overcome with rage. The world had turned to shit and this was the kind of trash that survived? She hit him over and over again, until her fist was throbbing and there were flecks of blood on her fingers.

And then somebody had a painful grip on her upper arms, forcing her hands down to her sides and hauling her to her unsteady feet. "Let go of me!" she shrieked, trying to break free of the hold.

"Just let it go," a deep southern voice was in her ear, breath hot on her bare neck. He raised his voice. "Merle, you okay?"

"Of course I ain't okay!" the man named Merle growled, struggling to his feet. He had the makings of a black eye and his nose was bleeding freely. "That fucking bitch hit me! I'm gonna kill her! I'll kill her!"

"Forget about it," the man holding Carlin captive answered coolly. "She ain't worth it. She's just some dumb kid. Not worth anything. The walkers'll get her soon enough anyway."

Merle glared at Carlin with pure hatred in those blue eyes, wiping blood off his face with the back of his hand. "Let her go," he ordered shortly. "I ain't gonna try nothin'."

At that, the man holding her released her arms. She whipped her head around to glare at him too. He was younger than Merle by several years, with short dark hair and the same intense blue eyes. He had dark facial hair and a heavy crossbow slung over one broad shoulder.

"What the fuck are you doin' out here?" he demanded, narrowing those intense eyes at her. "It's dangerous. Don't you know nothin'?"

Carlin bit back the vicious retort that hovered on the tip of her tongue. "The hose in our car broke. I need a new one. I was trying to find whatever vehicle made these to see if the hose matches." She gestured to the tracks beneath them.

Both men's eyes narrowed at her when she spoke, suspicions aroused when they noticed her thick accent. "Where the hell're you from?" the younger demanded.

"None of your bloody business," she snapped. "Now I'm going to leave and you'd better not follow me. I have to get to that hose or we'll be stranded out here when night falls."

"We?" Merle repeated with arched eyebrows. "There's more of you?"

Carlin frowned again, mentally berating herself for letting that one slip. "Aye," she finally admitted.

"Well, it'll be dangerous just waiting on the road by themselves, don't you think?" he said jauntily, still glaring at Carlin. "I'll just head on up there and offer my services."

"Don't you touch them!" Carlin snarled, lurching forward as if to throw another punch. "If you so much as lay a hand on them, I'll-"

The younger man caught her arm easily; he was very strong. "He won't," the man said, giving Merle a stern look. "Right, Merle?"

"Nope. Scout's honor." The sarcasm in his voice was hard to miss.

He shot another long look of pure loathing in Carlin's direction before slipping through the trees in the direction she'd come from. She was left alone with the dark-haired stranger. She glanced at him warily, still uneasy. Even if he thus far seemed decent enough, she couldn't imagine anyone normal willingly hanging out with a man like Merle.

"Well come on then," he muttered shortly, sounding for all the world like she was the biggest inconvenience. "We ain't got all day." Keeping his crossbow over his shoulder, he led the way further into the woods.

Carlin had no choice but to scoop up her discarded bat and follow him. "Wait," she called. "You're coming with me to the truck?"

"Yeah," he muttered.

"Why?"

"We saw it crash yesterday. It looks like somebody was trying to get out of Atlanta with a bunch of supplies. We could sorely use some supplies." His answers were short and clipped, but at least it was a conversation with someone who wasn't Nary or Kiri.

She hesitated. "I'm Carlin," she finally said.

He snorted derisively, not even looking at her. "What the hell kind of name is that?" She frowned at the obvious snub and refused to respond. For a moment there was nothing but the shuffling of their feet in the underbrush, but then he surprised her by saying, "My name's Daryl."

"Merle and Daryl. What are you? The two redneck wonders?" she said scathingly. They were pretty far into the woods now, the trees blocking most of the sunlight. Surely the truck couldn't be much further.

He snorted again. "Brothers, actually."

"You're related to that chanty wrassler? That inbred piece of shit?" she demanded shrilly.

The look he tossed over his shoulder was deadly. "Watch your mouth there," he warned coolly. "That's my family you're talkin' about."

They didn't speak again until the truck came into view. It had crashed into an enormous Sycamore tree, but the back of the truck seemed intact. Daryl circled the truck twice with his crossbow ready, looking for any signs of the dead ones, but whoever had crashed it was long gone now.

"Let's hope we both find what we need," he muttered, unlocking the handle at the back of the truck and sliding the door up. There was an overturned desk and a chair that had fallen on its side, but otherwise the back of the truck was empty. "Fuck!" Daryl growled, punching the side of the truck so loudly that the noise echoed.

"Shh!" Carlin warned fiercely, yanking the door down to hide them in the back of the truck. It was dark and dusty, with the only light coming through the cracks. "Do you want every one of those things within ten miles to come running?"

He glared at her for a second, clearly frustrated about the lack of supplies in the truck. "And what the hell would you know?" he snapped, closing the distance between them angrily. "You're just a fucking kid."

He had her backed up against the wall of the truck, invading her personal space. She could feel the heat radiating off his body. "I'm not a kid!" she yelled back, her temper flaring. "I'm twenty-three years old!"

Daryl pressed closer, his face just inches from hers now. His eyes still flashed dangerously, and for a moment she could see how he and Merle were related. "That's still a kid," he told her in a quiet, frightening voice. His face was so close to hers that she could make out the small mole at the corner of his mouth, taste his breath.

"Get the fuck away," she whispered, putting her hands on his shoulders but not pushing. His hands were on the truck wall on either side of her.

A vicious grin spread across his face. "And if I don't?" he challenged.

Carlin didn't really know how it happened. She was standing there glaring at him one moment and the next thing she knew her hands were wrapped around his neck and her mouth was attached to his. It was all the invitation he needed. He kissed her back fiercely, using his lips to force her mouth open, tasting her. A heat started somewhere in her nether region and refused to be quenched.

She shifted her weight around his neck and lifted herself up easily, using the wall of the truck to support herself as she wrapped her legs around his slender waist. He pressed himself against her even harder, using the wall to support most of her weight. She could feel his quickly-growing erecting through the stiff material of his jeans.

Things were becoming more frantic and fast. He moved his hungry lips down her jawline and across her collarbone, biting and sucking viciously. Her hands were trembling as she pulled his sleeveless shirt over his head, leaving him bare-chested; his name was tattooed across his chest. He didn't hesitate to remove her t-shirt, unclasping her bra in the same movement. He intertwined his fingers with hers with one hand, keeping it pinned to the wall; with his other hand he kneaded one breast roughly. His mouth found the other, sucking and biting and eliciting moan after moan from Carlin.

He didn't waste much time, though. Using the free hand, he unbuttoned her shorts and pulled off both the shorts and her underwear. It didn't take him long to finish stripping himself, either. And then their naked bodies were pressed together, so tantalizing, such a tease. Then, without hesitating, he buried himself to the hilt inside of her.

She moaned as he pounded into her repeatedly, momentarily forgetting the loss of her friends and family, the apocalypse, everything except the pure ecstasy. He kissed her fiercely, growing distracted with every thrust. It had been a long time since Carlin had had satisfying sex, so she came first. She arched her back and rode out the writhing orgasm, letting out a wild cry that would not be contained. He came too after a few more thrusts.

Sweaty and gasping for breath, Carlin rested her head on his shoulder as they both struggled to gain control of their heart rates. She was both humiliated and shocked by what had happened. He was a complete stranger, after all. Nary called her a prude, but Carlin didn't believe in casual sex. Maybe it was her upbringing.

He seemed just as embarrassed as she was when she gently pushed away and found the dusty floor beneath her feet. She looked around for her clothes, dusting dirt off of them before pulling them back on. She was glad it was dark in the back of the truck; at least Daryl couldn't see how red her face had grown.

He stood a few feet away from her, doing up the buttons on his jeans and reaching for his boots. "Well let's see if we can find that damn hose that you need. At least one of us might get what we came for."

The sunlight was excruciatingly bright when they lifted the truck door again, and they both squinted for several seconds before they hopped out. Daryl led the way to the front of the truck and popped the hood. He didn't know much about cars, but with his mechanical knowledge and Carlin's limited automotive experience, they managed to get the hose loose without causing any damage.

"Let's go," Daryl said shortly when it was safely in Carlin's hand. So they started back towards the highway, following the tire tracks out again.

"So do you normally do that?" she asked cautiously as they followed the trail, side-by-side now instead of single-file.

He glanced at her briefly, his expression unreadable. "Nope. You're the first." Pause. "You?"

"No. It's a first for me too."

Silence fell again, but for some reason Carlin felt a little lighter. She knew this man was at least ten years her senior, maybe more, and that he was related to a bigoted would-be rapist, but somehow it didn't matter. She liked him. She hadn't liked anyone in a long time.

"Thanks," she said finally.

He glanced down at her, surprised. "For what?"

"You know. For helping me with the hose in the engine. I never would have been able to disconnect it without your help." She glanced down at her toes. "And, you know, the other thing. I was really stressed out and that was...helpful."

He smiled shortly, a look that seemed out of place on such a belligerent face. "Not like I didn't enjoy it. Times are difficult."

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'll try to give you a run-down on characters after each chapter just so things don't get too confusing. **

**Meryl Dixon - show only**

**Daryl Dixon - show only (though I've heard a rumor that they're going to write him into the comic - I hope it's true!)**

**Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks everyone for the lovely reviews!**

**SaraLostInes: I'm glad you liked the smut! I'm always iffy about including it in stories (though I always do lol) because I don't want it to come across as vulgar, so I'm glad you liked it! And Nary gets on my nerves too XD I like Kiri waaaaay better!**

**constantlylost: bahahahahaha your review was amazing thank you! And yeah, I agree with you. I like to read about nice romances with Daryl but they're always pretty out of character. And besides, I'm sure if the world was ending, you'd take sex where you could get it XD**

**Lucy Freebird: I'm glad you liked the chapter!**

**SleepyHeather: I'm glad you're enjoying! Keep reading! **

It took them another ten minutes to reach the road, and thankfully they didn't run into any of the dead ones. They found Merle leaning against the rear bumper of the Explorer, arms crossed. He glared at Carlin as she and Daryl crossed the open grassy area from the woods to the car.

"Where are they?" Carlin demanded sharply, her aluminum bat in one hand and the engine hose in the other. "What did you do to them?"

"I ain't done shit," Merle grunted, spitting onto the asphalt not far from where she stood. "The little bitches wouldn't unlock the damn doors."

Carlin felt a certain self-satisfaction as she walked up to the driver's side window and tapped, motioning for her friends to get out. The twins were wary as they opened the doors and climbed out; they hadn't had human contact other than their family since the outbreak had started. "Girls, these are Daryl and Merle. Daryl helped me get the hose we needed. These are Nary and Kiri."

Merle looked the twins up and down much the same way he had Carlin, but the swollen, bloody nose and black eye kept his hands from straying.

"Pop the hood," Carlin commanded, and Nary hurried to obey. "Let's see if I can get this hose in."

Daryl followed her around to the front of the vehicle. "You could barely get the hose out of the other engine. What makes you think you'll manage here?" He leaned against the hood beside her, their shoulders just touching.

"Trial and error," she informed him with a shy smile, unable to meet his gaze. "It's got to work in the end, right?"

"Fat chance," came Merle's disgruntled voice from behind them. "You ain't never gonna get that hose hooked in right."

Daryl frowned. "He's probably right," he admitted. "I don't know enough about cars to help you. Disconnecting it is one thing, but hooking it up right is a whole different ball game. Jim might be able to help, though."

Carlin finally looked at him. "Jim? Who's Jim?"

"One of the guys at our camp," Daryl muttered. "He barely made it out of Atlanta when the virus hit. He used to be a mechanic or somethin'."

Kiri appeared beside them, fluffing out her loose-fitting top to completely hide her four-month baby bump. "You guys have a camp? With other people? Live ones, I mean, instead of the ones that try to eat you?"

"Yeah, there's about twenty-five of us or so," Daryl nodded. "How 'bout we take you there and then Jim can come have a look at this engine."

Carlin frowned, glancing at the twins. "What do you think? Do we trust the rednecks or try to fix this on our own?"

Kiri shrugged, her long, curly blond hair tumbling unchecked down her back. "We're definitely fucked if we stay here, so we may as well."

"Yeah," Nary agreed glumly.

"It's about a mile from here," Merle said, still giving Carlin that same ugly look. "Think your prissy ass can make it that far?"

"As long as you walk in front of me so I can shoot you if you try anything," she answered coolly.

Daryl ignored the heated exchange. "Keep your guards up," he warned. "We've got to go through the woods."

They walked in silence for about twenty minutes, with Merle leading the way and Daryl bringing up the rear. They moved quickly and quietly, keeping their weapons ready in case the dead ones showed up.

Eventually they came to a clothesline wrapped around several trees, creating a sort of barrier. There were empty tin cans hanging from the line with something hard inside that made noise against the tin when the line was moved. Merle ducked easily under the line and the others followed.

Not far past the line was where the tents started. There were a lot of them, a whole army of tents the same size, shape, and color. Around the perimeter were several vehicles, and a large RV was parked in the middle. There was a small fire going in the center of the campground, and a group of people - live ones - was clustered around it.

A stocky man with dark, curly hair and a broad chest got to his feet when they approached. "It's about time-" he began, but he stopped suddenly when he caught sight of Merle's face. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Nothin'," Merle snapped, and he stormed past the group of curious onlookers to a tent set up rather separate from the others.

Carlin lowered her bat now that they seemed to be among friends. "He couldn't keep his hands to himself so I taught him a little lesson."

"And just who are you?" the man asked, smiling. Daryl ignored the exchange and followed his brother. Carlin watched the others roll their eyes or whisper in disgust to one another as he passed, and she frowned.

"I'm Channary Clark, but you can call me Nary," Nary introduced herself, holding out her hand. "This is my sister Kiri and our friend Carlin."

The man shook her proffered hand. "Officer Shane Walsh from Cynthiana, Kentucky. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"You too," Nary smiled flirtatiously.

Shane folded his arms. "So how did ya'll happen to fall in with the Dixons? They aren't the friendliest bunch."

"We noticed," Kiri answered dryly. "We were looking for a hose for our car. Ours broke and we couldn't fix it. They found us while we were stranded. Well, they found Carly, right?"

"Aye," Carlin nodded. "Like you said, not the friendliest bunch. They said that you had a mechanic that might be able to help us out so we could get back on the road?"

Shane looked over his shoulder and beckoned to a thin, middle-aged man with quite a bit of scruff around his chin. "This here's Jim. Used to be a mechanic. Ain't that right, Jim?"

The man named Jim nodded, giving them a brief smile. "Yes, sir. You ladies got an automotive problem you need handled?"

"We do," Kiri nodded solemnly. Both she and her twin looked at Carlin to explain, since neither of them knew anything at all about cars.

Carlin tucked a loose strand of hair back into her elastic hairband. "We've got a Ford Explorer with a Cologne V6 engine and our radiator hose has a hole in it. We found one in another car that's the same, but we can't install it ourselves. We don't know how." She showed him the hose she and Daryl had salvaged from the crashed truck.

"Oh, well that's no problem," Jim said, taking the hose and examining it. "That won't take long at all, and I've got the tools to do it. How far away is your car?"

"About a mile through the woods," Carlin answered.

Shane shaded his eyes and looked up at the sky. "That's no good," he pointed out. "It's gonna be dark soon, and I'm not gonna have anybody out there once night falls." He looked back down at the three girls. "Why don't you stay with us tonight and we'll get you all fixed up tomorrow? We've got plenty of room."

"That sounds good," Nary replied with that same smile.

Carlin was frustrated with her friend's overly-flirtatious nature, but she couldn't deny the relief she felt at being able to spend the night with other people. It had been such a long time since she'd seen normal people.

"Well, come on over and I'll introduce you to everyone," Shane offered, and he and Jim led the way over to the campfire.

Daryl hadn't been lying; there were a good number of people at the camp. After the isolation of the past several weeks, Carlin was nearly overloaded by the sheer amount of people. There was Lori Grimes and her seven-year-old son Carl; Ed and Carol Peletier and their six-year-old daughter Sophia; Morales and his wife Miranda and their two children Eliza and Louis; Allen and his wife Donna and their twin sons Ben and Billy; Andrea and her younger sister Amy; Dale; Jim; Glenn; Jacqui; T-Dog; Hunter; Frank; and Gina.

A dark-haired woman who had been introduced as Lori smiled at the girls. "Here, come sit down. We'll have something to eat in just a little bit."

Nary sat down next to Shane, and Kiri sat next to her. That left Carlin to squeeze onto a log between Kiri and the blond girl named Amy.

"So where are ya'll from?" Amy asked, fiddling with her bracelet.

"Well, Nary and I are originally from Florida," Kiri explained. "We were attending the University of Maine in Orono when the outbreak happened."

Amy smiled. "I was going to the Art Institute of Charleston in South Carolina. My sister Andrea and I were coming back from Spring Break when everything happened. Our parents live in Florida."

"Hey, I'm an art major too," Kiri grinned, absently resting her hand on her abdomen. "Studio, not graphic design."

"I was graphic design," Amy explained. "What was your sister studying?" She directed her question to Kiri since Nary was busy listening to everything Shane was saying.

Kiri rolled her eyes. "She was in the Recording Industry program. She _thought_ she could play the guitar."

Amy turned to Carlin next. "So how do you know Kiri and Nary? Did you guys just meet up after the outbreak?"

"No, actually, I was going to the University of Maine as well," Carlin explained. "Nary and I were roommates."

Lori and the thin, short-haired woman introduced as Carol interrupted them then. "Dinner's ready, everyone. Let's eat!"

Shane's group of survivors was a friendly bunch, aside from Carol's husband Ed. And the Dixons. Carlin couldn't help but glance over at the two brothers while she ate with the others. They sat by their own tent, with their own small fire, completely separated from the rest of the group. They sat with their backs to the others, though Daryl looked up every once in a while. When he caught her staring she had to look away quickly, embarrassed.

It got dark quickly as they ate, bringing with it cooler temperatures. It wasn't long before they all said goodnight and got ready for bed.

Shane and the others had lent the girls one of their tents (they kept extra in the back of a church van they had picked up somewhere along the way) and some sleeping bags, mattress pads, blankets, and pillows. Shane and the Korean kid named Glenn even helped them set the tent up.

"God, I feel like shit," Kiri complained as they snuggled into their blankets. It was a three bedroom tent, with two sections on the sides and a place in the middle. The twins took one side and Carlin got the other, leaving the space in the middle for their belongings.

Nary rolled over, already half-asleep. "It's because you're pregnant, you whore."

"Please," Kiri grumbled. "You've slept with three times as many guys as I have."

"Shut up," Carlin muttered from her half of the tent. Thankfully the twins did, and she could tell when they fell asleep by their breathing. She rolled over onto her side, snuggling under the blankets, but she couldn't fall asleep.

She lay there listening to the camp grow silent around her. The fire was put out and everyone except the lookout went to sleep. She wasn't sure how long she lay there, but, when it became clear that she wasn't going to fall asleep any time soon, she got up and slipped her ballet flats on and quietly left the tent.

Though the camp had been hustling and bustling when they arrived, it was deserted now. Everyone was safely tucked away in their tents; they must have gone to bed hours ago by now. She started to make her way over to the remnants of the campfire, thinking to get some fresh air, when she noticed Daryl sitting on top of the RV with a pair of binoculars and a rifle. She changed direction at once and strode briskly over to the RV. The railings were slippery when she grabbed the ladder, but she hauled herself easily onto the roof and walked over to where he sat.

"Hey," she said softly. "What are you doing?"

"I'm on watch," he answered, looking up at her briefly and not smiling. "What are you doing?"

"Can't sleep." She gestured vaguely. "Mind if I sit?"

He shrugged. "Sure. Whatever."

Carlin smoothed out her sweatpants and sat down next to him, crossing her legs. It was even chillier now than when they'd gone to bed a few hours ago. She shivered.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, the night making noises around them. Just when she had given up on having a conversation, he spoke. "So what's your story?"

She hesitated for a moment. "Well, my names Carlin Inness. I grew up on a sheep farm outside of Portree-"

"Outside of where?" he interrupted, finally looking at her full on. They were sitting fairly close, nearly close enough for their knees to touch.

"Portree," she repeated. "It's the capital of the Isle of Skye." She was met with a blank look. "The Isle of Skye is an island in Scotland. You know, in Great Britain."

He sat back a bit. "So that's where the accent's from."

"Aye," she admitted, smiling a bit at her refusal to tell him earlier. "It's not a big city. Life on a farm isn't exactly glamorous."

The ghost of a smile appeared on his face. "So you're not some prissy princess then, huh? You're a farm girl."

"A lot of girls in Skye are farm girls," she chuckled. "There's really not much to do there. It's all about the sheep."

He shifted the weight of the rifle on his knees, looking out at the horizon again. "So if you're from this island place, how'd you end up here?"

"I was doing a foreign exchange program," she explained, following his gaze absently. "I technically attend the University of Edinburgh but I was in the States studying at the University of Maine."

"So what are you doing in Georgia, then?" was his next question. "It's a long damn way from Maine."

She ran her fingers through her hair, still tied up in a messy knot at the nape of her neck. "Tell me about it. I don't have any family in the States, so Nary, who was my roommate, and her sister Kiri took me home with them to Florida."

"So you're on the way there now?"

"Eh, not quite." She frowned, remembering their time in Groveland. "We got there several weeks ago and were pretty safe for a while. Then Nary and Kiri's little brother and father were eaten by the dead ones and their mother killed herself. So now we're on our way to Indiana to see if we can find the rest of their relatives."

There was a pause. "So you just follow them around and go wherever they tell you to go? That doesn't seem like a college-girl thing to do."

She couldn't tell if he was teasing her or not. "If it weren't for them taking me with them, I probably would have died back in Maine. I owe my life to them. I'll do whatever they want. They're probably all I have left now anyway." There was another pause while that sunk in. Then she shook her head. "What about you? Any sob story?"

He shrugged, their hands just barely touching. "Not really. I didn't really have any family besides Merle to begin with."

"What happened to the rest of your family?" she asked, cautiously linking her pointer finger with his.

There was a pause, but he allowed their fingers to stay linked. He actually curled his finger around hers more tightly before answering. "Our Ma died when we were just kids. I couldn't have been older than fifteen or so. Our Dad was a real piece of work. Always hitting our Ma and shit. After she died, Merle and I took off. He was eighteen by then. Our dad drank himself to death about six years back. We ain't got no other family that we ever met."

"I'm really sorry to hear that." She linked another finger, looking straight ahead and not at him.

He didn't seem to like the conversation focused on him. "So you were going to school, huh? What were you studying?" Another finger. This time it was Daryl who took the initiative.

"Sociology," she answered. "It doesn't seem like a very practical field of study when you think about it, but it's really interesting. Not that any of that matters anymore."

He grunted, and finally they were holding hands, though neither would look down to make sure out of pride and embarrassment. "Yeah, the fucking world's gone to shit. Not that mine was much better beforehand."

"What'd you do?" she asked, looking up at him. "For a living, I mean. Where did you live?"

"I worked as an exterminator with Merle," he muttered. "It was a shitty job for shitty pay, but at least it paid the bills. We lived in Bloomfield, Kentucky."

She frowned. "We? You lived with Merle?"

"Yeah. We're all each other has anymore. He may be a jackass sometimes but he's still my brother." He looked away, clenching his jaw. "Sorry about what he did earlier."

Carlin looked away too, embarrassed again. "It's fine. Nothing happened, so it's fine. Hopefully he'll remember to keep his hands to himself from now on."

"Oh, he will," Daryl said darkly.

There was another lull in the conversation then, and she shivered. He glanced down at her suddenly. "You cold?"

"A little," she admitted. She wasn't used to the drastic changes in temperature from day to night. Since the day had been so hot, she expected the night to be warm too and all she was wearing was a short-sleeved t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants.

He frowned at her. "Why didn't you put on more clothes? It's halfway through October."

"I'm not really used to this weather," she admitted. "I've only been in the States for a few months. And I hadn't really planned on coming south while I was here, either. I was supposed to stay up north the whole time."

"Here," he sighed like he was doing her a big favor and draped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer. His body heat enveloped her at once and she inhaled his musky, masculine scent.

She rested her head on his shoulder. "So, have you ever been married?"

"No," he snapped quickly. Then he paused. "You?"

"Nope. I'm only twenty-three," she reminded him, yawning. It must have been nearly two o'clock in the morning by now and she was starting to get tired. She looked up at him curiously. "How old are you?"

He looked down at her, meeting her sharp gaze. "Thirty-nine," he admitted.

She did the math quickly in her head. "So you're sixteen years older than me. That's a lot."

"Yeah. It is." He looked away, his jaw clenching again.

"I don't mind it though," she assured him, snuggling even closer and looking at him earnestly. "I really like you."

He was frowning as he turned to look at her again. "_Why_? I'm almost old enough to be your father. I ain't nothing special."

She laughed, something she hadn't done in a long while. "You're not old enough to be my father. I hope even Merle isn't trashy enough to become a father at sixteen. And I think you're special. There's no bullshit with you. You don't try to keep up appearances and you don't pretend to be something you're not. I like the honesty. It's refreshing."

He continued to frown but he didn't say anything.

"Do you regret this afternoon?" she asked when several minutes of silence had gone by.

Daryl looked at her sharply. "No. Do you?"

"Of course not." She was still staring at him. "I already told you that I liked you. Do you like me?"

"I wouldn't have slept with you if I didn't," came the gruff reply.

She smiled again, nuzzling closer. "I'm glad then." She pressed her lips softly against his stubbled cheek. He turned his head slightly so he could meet her lips with his, soft and timid and shy.

A delicate cough interrupted them, and Daryl pulled away from Carlin quickly, his face quite red. They both looked down below them, where Shane was standing with his hands shoved deep in his pockets.

"What the hell do you want?" Daryl snapped irritably.

Shane looked up at them with a strange little smile on his face. "Your shift is over. It's my turn. I came to relieve you," he answered, quietly so as not to wake everyone else.

Daryl simply glared at him for a moment, then set down the rifle and got abruptly to his feet. "Come on," he muttered to Carlin, who also got to her feet. He climbed down the ladder first, then silently extended his hand to help her down. She slipped her hand back in his as soon as they were both safely on the ground.

Shane watched them take a few steps towards the grouping of tents before he spoke again. "You can use my tent if you want," he offered them with that strange smile still in place. Carlin flushed crimson and Daryl glared at him, his free hand automatically balling up into a fist. "You know, just so you don't wake up your friends or your brother when you go back to bed."

"I don't need you to do me no favors," Daryl grunted fiercely.

"I ain't doing it for you," Shane told him pleasantly. "I'm doing it for me. I know how your brother gets when somebody wakes him up and I don't think anybody wants that."

Carlin tugged Daryl in the direction of the tents. "Thanks," she whispered to Shane, still blushing. She was grateful, of course, but she was also humiliated. She had always been a relatively private person and she didn't like the idea of someone else so intimately involved in her relationship - if what she had with Daryl was even a relationship at all.

Daryl remained stoically silent as they reached Shane's tent. He unzipped it and motioned for her to go in first with a short, almost annoyed look. Then he clambered in after her.

Shane's tent was exactly like the one the group had lent Carlin, Kiri, and Nary to sleep in. One of the mini rooms had been set up as a sort of closet/bathroom, with clothes and a little table and a basin of water with which to wash. The opposite room was a mess of sleeping pads and blankets and pillows.

Carlin kicked off her flats in the middle area of the tent and lay down on the makeshift bed to the side. It really wasn't that uncomfortable, she noted. It was actually a lot better than sleeping in the car, even a car with as much room as the Explorer. She lay on her back, crossing her ankles, and waited for Daryl to take off his boots and sit down heavily beside her.

When he lay down, she rolled onto her side so she could face him better. Even in the dark, his blue eyes were intense. Then she brought her mouth to his and kissed him, her fingers entwining in his short, dark hair.

"You know I'm too old for you," he panted between kisses, rolling her onto her back and hovering above her. He planted kisses from the corner of her mouth down her jawline and then down her neck, sucking and biting playfully.

She tried to keep her voice down so as not to disturb anyone around them. "Actually, I think _I'm_ too old for _you_," she teased, arching her back as he pulled her t-shirt over her head. She wasn't wearing a bra underneath, and his mouth found its way immediately to one bare breast.

He chuckled, rumbling the soft flesh of her breast as he lightly tugged at one nipple with his teeth. "You know what? You might be right."

They got more serious then, and talking was out of the question. Removing his own shirt, Daryl moved his mouth back up to hers. While he kissed her, slower and more sensuously than he had that afternoon, one hand slid past the waistband of her sweatpants and her panties. He cupped her gently, feeling how much she wanted him, and then carefully slid one finger inside her.

She brought one of her hands up to cup his face gently, and her other moved down to the growing bulge in his pants. He moaned when she brushed it roughly through his jeans, rubbing up and down quickly.

He inserted a second finger into her, pumping them methodically while his thumb rubbed little circles on her sweet spot. She bit her lower lip to keep from crying out. She hadn't realized how sexually repressed she'd been all this time until she'd met Daryl. Now it was like she couldn't get enough.

She unzipped his pants with shaky hands and released the monstrosity that was his erection. Carlin grasped it firmly in her hand and began pumping as quickly as she could. He hesitated a moment, a look of pure pleasure on his face, before he inserted both a third and fourth finger. They were trying to take things slow this time, to really enjoy it, but they were both so needy. The apocalypse did that to a person.

He removed his hand and carefully removed what was left of her clothes. Then he stripped himself bare and positioned himself above her. He paused for a moment, taking in the sight of her laid bare beneath him. She was very pale, like a ghost, with a sheet of straight dark hair that fanned out beneath her like a halo and eyes so dark they were nearly black. She was smiling at him from behind half-closed eyelids now, waiting.

Daryl eased into her slowly this time. Carlin loved the feel of his bare chest pressed against hers, of skin against skin. He paused when he was buried to the hilt inside her, allowing both of them to get used to the sensation. Then he began to move slowly, determined to make it last longer this time.

They went for nearly an hour, silent and slow. Every time they picked up speed and their hips rocked together more frantically, Daryl would pause for a moment, pulling out, until they were both able to go on. When they finally came, it was almost simultaneously. Carlin's legs, wrapped around his waist, tightened considerably and she arched her back up off the makeshift bed, thrusting her pale breasts in his face. When he felt her walls clench around him, he couldn't hold back any longer and he came too.

Then he collapsed on top of her, the both of them covered in a sticky sheen of sweat. They lay that way for a moment, his weight somehow comforting, and then he rolled off and pulled one of the blankets up to cover them.

"That was...amazing," Carlin breathed, snuggling closer. "I wish we could stay here all night."

Daryl frowned, still panting a little. "Me too, but that dick's shift is going to be over soon and he'll be coming back. It's probably getting close to dawn."

"Yeah," she agreed, sighing but reaching for her clothes. "I like Shane, don't get me wrong, but I don't like the idea of having sex where he sleeps. It's sort of weird."

"Tell me about it," Daryl grunted, shimmying into his boxers.

They finished dressing in silence, and then they slipped out of Shane's tent. It was probably close to three thirty or four now; the edge of the horizon was tinted with the faintest bit of light.

Daryl walked her back to her tent, where he kissed her goodnight even though Shane could see them. "I'll see you tomorrow," he muttered when he pulled away, both exhausted from the encounter and embarrassed that he cared so much about a girl he had just met.

"Yeah. Tomorrow," she agreed, giving him a weary smile. Then she ducked into the tent she was sharing with Kiri and Nary. It was very dark inside the tent, and she stumbled over to her side with the feeling of Daryl's hands on her body still in mind. When she crawled under the blankets, she couldn't help wishing he was there in bed with her.

**I think I just can't stay away from writing smut that includes a character played by Norman Reedus...**

**Review please! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks so much for all the wonderful reviews, guys!**

**SleepyHeather: yes, I concur. Anything smutty that includes Norman Reedus is okay in my book! Which is why I can't seem to stop writing it XD**

**SaraLostInes: haha I'm so glad everyone understands the smut obsession with Norman Reedus XD**

**Lucy Freebird: I'm right there with you that Daryl doesn't seem the romantic type. Can you imagine him giving flowers or candy to a girl haha**

**Belladonna: I'm glad you like the OCs! I actually really started to like them (except Nary, for some reason I can't help but write her as a whiny brat)**

**constantlylost: I've always seen Daryl as a sex-then-love type of guy too XD**

It had been daylight for several hours when Carlin finally woke up. She rolled over under her mounds of blankets, feeling suddenly oppressed by the heat. She got to her feet, feeling more rested than she had in weeks, and glanced at the other side of the tent where the twins had been sleeping. Both Nary and Kiri were gone, their sleeping area a total disaster. Carlin dressed quickly, made up her sleeping bag neatly, and exited the tent.

It must have been about midmorning by this point. Everyone was bustling around the campsite, doing their work quickly and efficiently while still chatting pleasantly with one another. Carlin was a little jealous. Even though society as they had known it had ended, these people still managed to make life seem a little normal.

Amy, who was walking from the RV with an armload of clothes, stopped when she saw Carlin. "Morning, sleepyhead!" she greeted Carlin with a smile.

"Good morning," Carlin mustered, unable to feel quite so cheerful in the morning. She gestured briefly to the armload of clothes in Amy's arms. "What are you doing?"

"We're all down at the lake washing clothes," Amy explained. "It's not like a washing machine, but we manage to keep everyone's clothes clean for the most part. Got anything you need washed?"

Did she ever. Even during their stay at the mostly self-efficient farm in Groveland, where there had been well water aplenty, there had been no electricity and Mrs. Clark's washing machine had been useless. She hadn't had the chance to wash her clothes in a long time.

So, while Amy waited patiently, Carlin ducked into her tent and scrounged up all the dirty laundry she could find. Then the blond led the way down a rather steep, rocky hill towards the beach. All of the other women had gathered there already. They were sitting at the edge of the water, their pant legs rolled up to the knees, laughing and joking with one another.

The twins were sitting side by side, washing their clothes. Now that Nary's short hair was growing out and she didn't have her hair straightener, her hair looked a lot more like Kiri's. They were even dressing more alike now, going for comfort rather than style. Despite having spent so much time with them over the past several months, Carlin was suddenly reminded that they were identical.

Kiri glanced up, saw Carlin, and waved her over with a smile. "Come on, lazy bones! We're doing laundry!"

Carlin found a spot between Kiri and Amy and sat down with her dirty clothes. There was detergent, though where it had come from was anyone's guess, and a great number of old-fashioned washboards, like the kind Carlin's grandmother still swore by.

"You sure slept late," Nary commented, glancing up through her long blond bangs.

"Yeah, _somebody_ snored like a walrus last night," Carlin teased by way of an answer. Nary, who had always been a little embarrassed by her snoring, blushed crimson and didn't reply.

The group of women spent the morning washing not only their clothes, but all the men's clothes as well. "Why are we doing all the washing?" Nary asked as the sun neared its pinnacle in the sky. It had grown hot again; Carlin was grateful to be splashing around in the cold water of the lake. "Shouldn't there be an equal labor law or something?"

"You're preaching to the choir," Jacqui answered with a chuckle.

Carol shrugged her bony shoulders, looking grim. "It's just the way things are. When the world ends, we revert back to stereotypical gender roles."

"So what's everybody else doing?" Carlin asked. She didn't mention Daryl by name, but that's who she was thinking of. She didn't know what she had expected after the previous day with him, but it certainly wasn't to have him completely gone. But she hadn't seen hide nor hair of him all morning.

Lori shrugged as she scrubbed one of her son's shirts. "You know, _men_ stuff. Dale keeps watch and Jim works on the vehicles to make sure they're all in good working order. Glenn's babysitting for Donna, Carol, Miranda, and I. Daryl and Merle went off hunting." Lori continued, but Carlin ceased to listen. She'd heard all she needed to.

"Daryl and Merle went hunting?" she repeated, trying to sound only marginally curious. "Do they usually bring back a lot?"

"A fair amount," Lori nodded.

Carlin nodded, looking down at the washing in her hands. "Ah, so they probably take a long time. I'm sure they won't make it back in time for dinner."

"I don't know. It all depends on how much game they can find," Lori answered. "Sometimes they're gone for days, and sometimes they're back within a few hours. It all just depends."

Even though their tongues moved faster than their hands, the group of them managed to get through the entire camp's washing by lunchtime. There were no clothespins, so they simply draped the dripping articles over their makeshift clotheslines and waited for the sun to do its work.

They all gathered around the fire pit for a small lunch, everyone except Dale, who kept watch atop the RV with a shotgun in hand and a pair of binoculars around his neck. Carlin learned from Glenn that he often went scavenging into the nearby city of Atlanta for supplies, which, along with what Merle and Daryl brought back from their hunting trips, was why the group didn't mind having three more mouths to feed.

After lunch, Jim leaned back on his hands and glanced at Shane. "I think we ought to take a look at that car pretty soon, don't you?"

The former cop looked up at the sky, gauging the time. "Yep. Seems like a good idea. I'd rather we take the road, though. I don't particularly want to be traipsing through these woods if we don't have to be."

"I'll go with you," Nary offered, that familiar twinkle in her eye. "I've got the keys and everything."

It was settled quickly. Shane, Jim, and Nary set off in an uncovered Jeep for the abandoned Explorer. The others quickly dispersed, returning to their chores or their games. The six children were rounded up and Lori tried to teach them from old textbooks, but the boys seemed more intent on teasing Sophia and Eliza.

"It's so hot," Carlin complained. She was sitting beside the RV with Kiri, fanning herself with her hand. "I don't understand this country at all. How can it be so cold at night and so hot during the day?"

Kiri grinned, her teeth gleaming against her suntanned skin. "That's just the south. Not all of America is like this." She paused. "Why don't we go swimming? It sure as hell beats roasting out here for the rest of the afternoon."

Carlin actually thought it was a good idea. They returned to their tent and dug around for something suitable to swim in. Carlin, who had everything she'd brought to America with her, had a bathing suit. Kiri hadn't thought to pack one when they left Groveland, so she went for a black t-shirt and a pair of cotton shorts.

They had been in the cold water of the lake for maybe an hour or so - long enough for their fingers to become pruned - when a voice Carlin had already come to hate interrupted them. "Well now, ain't this a sight for sore eyes," Merle crowed. When the girls looked up, they saw both Merle and his brother standing on one of the many boulders surrounding the quarry. Merle had a shotgun over his shoulder, Daryl a crossbow. Daryl had a string of dead squirrels hanging from one hand.

"What, you didn't get your jollies looking at the other women in camp?" Carlin said coolly, squinting into the bright sunlight.

Merle's gaze narrowed at her in dislike. "Don't flatter yourself. You ain't nothin' special, you foreign piece of shit."

Carlin's frown deepened. She waited for Daryl to say something in her defense, _anything_, but he looked determinedly down at his shoes and said nothing. It was like Merle had some sort of magical sway over him.

"Then kindly look elsewhere," she replied. "I'd hate for anyone to think you were looking. It might tarnish your impeccable reputation."

Merle's look turned even uglier, if that was possible. "Come on," he muttered to his brother. Daryl gave Carlin a short, unreadable look before following Merle back up to camp.

"Can you believe those assholes?" Kiri demanded, dragging herself out of the water. The wet cotton of her t-shirt clung to her distended abdomen as she wrung water out of it. "Wouldn't you just know that the world ends and we get stuck with redneck bigots like that."

"Just the older one," Carlin corrected, following her friend onto dry land and wringing out her long hair. "I didn't tell you and Nary, but he tried to rape me yesterday in the woods."

Kiri's mouth fell open. "Seriously? Why would you bring him back to us then? Or go with him?"

"First of all, I didn't bring him back to you. He went on his own," Carlin corrected, grabbing her towel and wrapping it around herself. "And secondly, his brother stopped him. Daryl saved me. Plus they had Jim, the mechanic, and we'd never have gotten anywhere without him."

Kiri continued to frown. "Are you okay, at least?"

"Of course. I'm fine. Like I said, Daryl saved me." Carlin flashed her friend a grin. "Come on, let's go get some dry clothes."

Carlin and Kiri settled around the fire pit with Amy, Andrea, and Jacqui once they had changed into clean, dry clothes. Jacqui was recounting a humorous story from before the outbreak when the Jeep roared back into camp, Jim behind the wheel.

"Where's my sister?" Kiri jumped to her feet, alarmed when she saw that Jim was alone. "Where's Nary?"

Jim cut the engine. "She and Shane are following in the Explorer," he called.

Carlin felt a sense of relief wash over her. "So it's working again? The hose worked alright?"

"It worked just fine," Jim nodded. "Almost as good as new." He might've said something else but the Explorer pulled into camp at that moment, Shane behind the wheel and Nary sitting in the front passenger seat. Lori's eyes narrowed in dislike but she quickly turned her face so Carlin couldn't be sure of what she'd seen.

Nary let out an excited whoop as she climbed out of the car. "It works! Carly, Kiri! It works!"

"We see that." Kiri rolled her eyes in amused exasperation, resuming her seat.

Carlin waited for everyone else in camp to get distracted, then she drew her two friends away from them, down to the beach. "I know the plan was to go to Indiana to try and find your relatives, but..." she trailed off, thinking that maybe it wasn't her place to say anything.

"But maybe we should stay here," Kiri finished for her, unusually solemn. She glanced at her sister. "Carly's got a valid point. These people here, they have guns and food. They're well-protected and safe."

Nary was clearly torn on the matter. "But Grandma and Aunt Hester and Lauren and Bill and Grant..."

"We could go all that way to New Harmony for no reason," Kiri pointed out. "They could be dead by now for all we know-"

"Don't say that!" her twin snapped. "Don't say that, Kiri! They're _not_ dead! We at least have to try and find them!"

Carlin put her hand gently on Nary's shoulder. "And what if we don't find them? We'll be putting ourselves in danger."

"You don't have to come," Nary snapped irritably. "Hell, neither of you have to come. But I'm going to find my family."

Carlin frowned. "You know I'm going wherever you do. That's not even a question."

"Me too," Kiri agreed solemnly. "It's just a discussion, Nary. Don't get so overemotional."

They shared a brief, silent smile at their unification, but Carlin couldn't help feeling pangs of regret somewhere deep in her chest. They'd only been in this camp for a day and a half, but she knew it was going to be hard to leave it. To leave Daryl.

He and his brother were set apart from the rest of the camp when she and the twins rejoined the others. She figured it was always like that with them. Merle ostracized himself too much and Daryl would always follow his brother no matter what. Carlin was sure it had something to do with Merle taking care of him after their mother died. She couldn't help glancing his way as she settled down in one of the chairs next to Miranda. He looked back at her and they shared a short, secret smile.

They cooked the squirrels the Dixon brothers had hunted for dinner. Carlin had never eaten squirrel before, but she figured now wasn't a time to be picky. Only Kiri shied away from the meat, wrinkling her nose.

"You should eat it," Carlin told her seriously, taking a bite of the succulent meat. It wasn't as bad as she had expected. "I know you're a vegetarian, but think of the baby. Who knows the next time you'll be able to get protein?" She said it in a low voice, in case Kiri didn't want their new friends to know about her impending motherhood.

Kiri frowned, but she took the skewer of meat her twin offered her and nibbled it cautiously.

The daylight faded soon, bringing with it the cooler temperatures Carlin still wasn't used to. They grabbed jackets, sweatshirts, and blankets from their tent and stayed together, chatting, for a while longer. Then they split and went their different ways to bed.

Carlin hesitated as Shane piled dirt on top of the coals to put the fire out. "Are there any extra tents?" she asked tentatively, hoping it was too dark for him to see her vivid blush. "It's just, Nary snores pretty loudly and I'd really like to get some sleep..."

Shane's expression was unreadable. "Sure," he finally said. "We got plenty. It's going to be a bitch to set up in the dark though."

"I'll help," Glenn, who had overheard the exchange, offered cheerfully. Carlin was going to miss his eagerness to help. He was always there when anyone needed anything. While Carlin held the flashlight high enough for them to see, Shane and Glenn put her tent together.

"Thanks," she murmured, grateful she'd have at least a semblance of privacy for one night. Shane gave her a long, level look with that same knowing smile, but he only bid her goodnight and headed off for his own tent.

Carlin moved her belongings from the twins' tent to her new one easily; there wasn't much to begin with. She couldn't help but glance over towards the Dixons' tent. The brothers were still sitting outside, beside their own small fire. Daryl glanced up at her and caught her eye. She smiled invitingly. His return smile was instantaneous.

She called a very public goodnight to everyone, then crawled into her tent. She changed out of her day clothes into more comfortable sleepwear, then crawled under the blankets on her makeshift bed. She lay there for a while, her entire body tingling with anticipation.

The entire camp had been silent for maybe an hour when Daryl risked coming to her. There was the soft sound of the tent flap unzipping, and then his large outline blocked the moon from view. Then he was inside, just as silently closing up the tent again.

He wasted no time in coming to her, pulling his shirt over his head as he went. They wasted no time with words, his lips seeking out hers in the darkness. His body, pressed tightly against hers, had a sense of urgency about it. His fumbling fingers undressed her quickly, running his calloused hands all over her smooth body, caressing every curve, every hollow, every blemish.

When they made love this time, it was like nothing before. Their first encounter had been purely carnal, a catharsis of pent-up frustration. Their second had been about exploration, getting to know one another. This time... this was about something unspoken between them. Carlin found tears pricking her eyes as they moved together. She wasn't a sentimental person, especially since the outbreak. She just wondered when she'd have this again.

They came nearly at the same moment, but they didn't pull apart. There was no need to move away quickly, no one who was going to catch them or interrupt them. They lay with their arms and legs entwined for a long while, until the sweat gleaming on their bodies had dried and Carlin was starting to shiver.

Daryl pulled the blankets up over them, drawing her to him. She fit perfectly in the natural curve of his body, their skin warm together. He pressed his lips gently to her forehead. Nothing was said. What was there to say?

Eventually Carlin fell asleep with his comforting presence beside her.

**Haha more smut. What else did you expect? But sadly there won't be any for the next several chapters : (**

**Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the brief hiatus guys! **

**Aku15: haha yaaaaaaaay! I'm glad you love me XD I will definitely keep writing!**

**Belladonna925: I sort of hate making Merle such a jerk, but how else can you write him with the way his character is portrayed? I've read some fanfictions where Merle is a totally likable character, just misunderstood. While I like this ideal, I personally feel is it so OOC it's not even funny XD**

**SaraLostInes: Sometimes I feel like I made Daryl a bit of a wimp when it comes to dealing with Merle, but I feel it's okay to take liberties with those parts since we never actually see Merle and Daryl interacting in the show (and certainly not in the comic since they are tv-show-only characters). He won't be so wimpy in the future. **

**Lucy Freebird: Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying! I hope this chapter is good too! **

She was woken about an hour before dawn as he dressed quietly. He kissed her sleepily then stumbled back to his own tent so as not to arouse unwanted attention. She rolled over, inhaling the scent he'd left behind on her blankets, and tried to fall back asleep.

An hour and a half later, when it was clear that sleep was no longer an option, she got up and got dressed, packing all of her belongings swiftly in anticipation of their departure. She twisted her hair up off her neck, pulled on her jacket to ward off the chill of the morning, and left the tent.

Only a handful of others were already up and about, getting the fire going, checking the camp's perimeter. She yawned and went to find something to eat. There was a half-empty box of granola bars Glenn must have gotten from the city, so she took one and ate it in three bites.

Kiri emerged about a quarter of an hour later, dressed in a pair of baggy sweatpants and one of her billowy peasant blouses. She looked exhausted.

"Morning," she muttered, reaching for one of the granola bars.

"Good morning," Carlin answered. "Where's Nary?"

Kiri carefully unwrapped the granola bar. "She went with Shane to get water. She's been following him around like a puppy since we got here."

Carlin frowned. She wanted to pass judgement on Nary, trying to get involved with someone when they were only going to leave, but if that wasn't hypocritical she didn't know what was. She glanced briefly at Daryl and Merle's tent, blushing. She didn't allow herself to think about how much she was going to miss Daryl.

Shane and Nary returned with the water about ten minutes later, and it was about an hour after that before the entire camp had woken up. Nary and Carlin were loading all their belongings into the back of the Explorer (they refused to let Kiri do any heavy lifting) when Merle and Daryl emerged from their tent.

"Is that everything?" Kiri asked, one hand resting absently on her abdomen. "We're not forgetting anything, are we?"

Sophia, Carol's young daughter, clutched her doll tightly and frowned. "What's going on? Are you leaving?"

"Yep," Nary answered brightly. "We're heading to Indiana. We're going to find our family." The forced cheerfulness in her voice was unmistakeable.

Lori frowned and lowered her voice, even though the entire camp was listening. "I think maybe you should stay with us," she said. "In Kiri's condition, it's too dangerous to go out on your own." So her pregnancy had not gone unnoticed, at least among the mothers of the group. Carlin should have known.

Kiri's smile was genuine. "Thanks for your concern, but this is something we have to do. If we don't find them, we'll come back here. Hopefully you'll still be here."

Lori didn't seem to like it, but she nodded, one hand on Carl's shoulder. "I understand. We'll be keeping an eye out for you then."

Carlin glanced briefly at Daryl only to find his face clouded and angry. "You're leaving?" he said, surprising many of the group. The anger in his tone was palpable.

She closed the distance between them with long, loping strides, trying to draw him aside. It was a futile effort; everyone in the camp was watching with wide eyes. "I told you we were heading to Indiana. To find Nary and Kiri's family." She spoke in a low, private tone.

His eyes met hers and he refused to look away. "Don't go." It was more of an order than a request. "Stay here. It's safe here."

She looked away, feeling an ache somewhere deep inside. "I can't," she repeated. "I go where they go. That's just the way it is."

He let out a low growl and punched the side of the RV, making her jump. He must have hit it hard; there was a small dent in the metal. If everyone hadn't been looking before, they certainly were now. The tension hung thick in the air like a blanket.

"Dammit, Carlin," he snapped, sounding nearly anguished. "Don't do this! Stay here!"

There was no way she could meet his eyes now. Already the tears were threatening to fall, and Carlin was not a woman who cried easily. "We'll come back," she promised. "If we don't find anyone in Indiana, we'll come back."

He looked away, shaking his head. His hands were trembling with emotion. "Ain't good enough," he muttered, his voice nearly breaking.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, clenching and unclenching her fists. "I really am."

There was a long pause during which neither looked at one another and no one in camp made a sound. The tension just grew.

Finally Nary broke the silence, sounding almost frightened and not at all like her usual confident self. "Carly?" she said tentatively. "We really ought to get going soon..."

Carlin hesitated, finally bringing her eyes back to Daryl's face. "Bye," she said softly.

She turned to go when he caught her wrist firmly and turned her back around, pressing his lips against hers fiercely. He held her to him roughly, his face against her soft hair. "You better not die," he snarled.

"I won't," she answered, relieved that she at least got this goodbye. "The same goes for you."

"You ain't got to worry about that." He released her, still looking as angry as before. There was a hint of despair in those bright blue eyes now. She wished she'd never had to see it.

She spared him one last look and followed the twins to the Explorer. The tears were threatening to come as she climbed into the backseat, letting Kiri have the front for once, and buckled her seatbelt.

Nary turned the key in the ignition but hesitated. "If you want to stay, Carly," she began uncertainly.

"Just drive!" Carlin hadn't meant to yell, but it was all she could manage at the moment.

Nary and Kiri shared a glance, and Nary pulled away from the camp. The last image Carlin had was of Merle's disgusted face and Daryl shrugging off his brother, storming away to nurse his wounded pride on his own. Then the dam broke and the tears spilled unchecked down her cheeks. For a long time the only sound was Carlin's hiccuping sobs.

**I really like this scene. I don't know why. Anyway, please review! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay! New chapter time!**

**Belladonna925: she'll go back eventually but there's going to be quite a few chapters about Carlin, Nary, and Kiri first**

**SaraLostInes: yeah, their reunion will be awesome XD **

**Lucy Freebird: yeah, when I wrote this I argued both sides. On the one hand, I like writing Carlin's interactions with Daryl a lot, but on the other I really wanted a chance to delve deeper into Carlin and the twins' personalities on their own, so that ended up winning for now haha**

**Azalia Fox Knightling: yeah, it was stupid for them to leave the security of the camp. Both Carlin and Kiri knew that, but Nary (being the domineering one, of course) wanted to go, so off they went. **

**gurl3677: XD Daryl isn't very good at expressing his emotion haha**

Chapter Seven

They stopped that night in a copse of trees somewhere around the Tennessee/Kentucky border. They didn't dare light a fire for fear of attracting dead ones, so they ate some of the canned food Shane and the others at the survivor camp had sent with them.

Nary and Kiri exchanged anxious looks, glancing briefly at Carlin as they sat in the dark Explorer and ate from their aluminum cans.

Carlin sighed, spearing some cold green beans with her plastic fork. "I'm fine," she assured them shortly. "Stop worrying."

"We just didn't know you were into that guy," Kiri explained. "I mean, as long as we've known you, you haven't really shown any interest in anyone."

Nary nodded. "And that guy was old."

"Not any older than Shane," Carlin pointed out.

Nary simply shrugged. "That turned out to be a dead end anyway. I'm pretty sure he was sleeping with Lori. He politely ignored all of my advances." She frowned. "I'm hotter than some middle-aged mom, right?"

"Of course," Kiri answered solemnly.

Her twin rolled her eyes. "Anyway, like Kiri said, we didn't know you were into him." She paused. "It looked pretty serious."

"It doesn't matter. It's over now anyway." Carlin didn't want to discuss it. It was painful enough just thinking about it in her head.

Kiri hesitated, both arms wrapped protectively around her little belly. "We'll come back," she promised. "After we get to New Harmony and find whatever we find, we'll come back to Atlanta. We'll come back to Daryl."

"Thanks," Carlin muttered, setting aside her half-eaten can of green beans. She had no appetite. She was exhausted but she didn't think she could sleep. It was going to be a long night.

They were off again by nine the next morning, waiting until it was suitably light before heading out. They passed the rusty-looking sign welcoming them to New Harmony, Indiana a little after noon.

The town of New Harmony was just as deserted as all the others the girls had passed through since the outbreak. Storefronts had been decimated, everything looted. Abandoned cars sat parked on all sides of every road.

"Do you remember how to get to Grandma's house?" Kiri asked in a voice hardly more than a whisper. The town gave them all the creeps.

"I think so." Nary didn't sound as sure as Carlin would have liked.

They spent the better part of an hour traversing the narrow, clogged roads of the town. There were dead ones aplenty, but they were moving slow and the girls had no problems bypassing them in the Explorer. A few turned and tried to follow them along the cracked asphalt, but it wasn't difficult to evade them.

Eventually, just when Carlin was about to give up entirely, Nary let out a relieved sigh. "Finally. Here's the street." She made a right turn, putting on her blinker out of habit, onto a street lined with old houses. It would have looked like a fairly upscale neighborhood if it weren't for the trash on the lawns, the abandoned cars on the streets, doors standing wide open where people had evacuated.

They were silent as Nary turned the Explorer into the drive of a pink house with white shutters. It was a long, ranch-style home with what had at one time been well-manicured flower beds on either side of the front walkway. Keeping their weapons ready (and sincerely hoping they wouldn't have to use them), the trio exited the car and walked up to the front door.

Nary reached out and turned the knob, and the door creaked open. Even though it was unlocked, it didn't appear to have been forced. "Hello?" she called cautiously. "Grandma? It's Channary and Kiri!" There was no reply.

A quick check of the house revealed there was no one there, living, dead, or undead. Kiri sat down heavily on the purple love seat in the living room, blowing a strand of hair off her forehead. "So what now?"

"They may still be around," Nary pointed out. "The house doesn't look like it's been looted or anything. There are clothes and stuff missing, like Grandma packed up and left or something."

Kiri pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Maybe she went to stay with Aunt Hester and Uncle Peter? They don't live far from here. It's worth checking out, at least."

"It was all I could do to get us to Grandma's house." Nary shook her head. "I'll never be able to find Hester and Peter's."

Carlin was looking under the end table beside the sofa. "What about this?" She held up an agenda, faded and obviously well-used.

"Grandma's address book!" Nary exclaimed, grinning. "That'll definitely have their address. Then all we need is a map and we should be fine."

So the girls scrounged up a road atlas and, with the twins' grandmother's address book in tow, piled back into the Explorer. As products of the electronic age, being solely dependent on a GPS that hadn't worked since the satellites went down shortly after the outbreak, the twins knew nothing about reading maps. Carlin, who had grown up in a much smaller town, was put in charge of navigating. Even so, it took them about two hours to make what should have been a twenty-five minute trip.

Eventually, Nary turned the car into the paved drive of a quaint two-story cottage with a wraparound porch and a tire swing hanging from a tree out front.

"Be on your guard," Nary warned the others, unnecessarily. They had been nothing but careful these last several weeks.

The three of them slipped quietly out of the Explorer, their weapons ready, and crept towards the house. Unlike the twins' grandmother's house, there were obvious signs of looting here. The front window in the living room was busted out, and the front door had been kicked in.

They moved cautiously through the house, checking for dead ones and any signs of Nary and Kiri's family. The entire bottom floor of the house was a disaster, having been stripped by looters, but the upstairs seemed untouched. Nevertheless, there were no signs of the twins' aunt and uncle.

"I guess-" Kiri began. They had reached the last bedroom at the top floor, only to find it empty. Kiri was interrupted by the unmistakable sound of a gun being cocked.

"Put your weapons down," a small, feminine voice ordered coldly. "And turn around. Very slowly."

Carlin felt the familiar flutter of panic in her chest that came when dealing with unknown humans. She carefully laid her aluminum bat on the ground, next to Kiri's axe and Nary's hoe. Then they cautiously turned around.

The girl leveling the rifle at them couldn't have been more than eleven or twelve. She had strawberry blond hair and green eyes and a harsh expression. And then suddenly she lowered the gun. "Kiri? Nary?"

"Lauren!" Kiri exclaimed. "Oh my god! We thought you were all dead!" She threw her arms around the girl's shoulders.

The girl hugged back numbly. "We thought _you_ were dead! What on earth are you doing here?"

"We came looking for you and the rest of the family," Nary explained, unable to keep a goofy smile off her face. "Are you staying here?"

Lauren shook her head, resting the barrel of the rifle over her shoulder. "Naw, we're staying with a group of survivors in the middle of town. There's a fortified warehouse we've been living in. The guy who runs the group is a little crazy, but it's really safe. Where's Sam? And Uncle Dan and Aunt Yvonne?"

Nary turned stonily silent and looked away, so Carlin said quietly, "They didn't make it."

Lauren turned to look at Carlin for the first time. "And who are you?"

"This is Carly," Kiri explained. "She was Nary's roommate at school. She was with us back in Groveland when..." She trailed off. There was no need to explain it anyway. Lauren already knew. "What about everybody here? Did you all make it? What about Grandma?"

Lauren slowly shook her head. "Dad got Grandma out of her place when it first started, but she didn't make it long. Couldn't move fast enough, you know? She was one of the firsts."

"What about everyone else?" Nary forced herself to ask.

The twins' cousin looked down at her shoes. "There's not many of us left. Dad, Grant, Megan and I are all that's left. They're all over at the warehouse."

"And what are you doing out here? All by yourself?" Kiri asked, putting her hands on her hips. "It's dangerous, Lauren!"

Again, Lauren shrugged. "I was coming to get some clothes. We've got no way to do laundry at the warehouse, so all of our clothes are really dirty. Dad didn't want me to come, but Marshall said I could."

"Marshall?" Nary repeated.

"He's the guy that runs our camp," Lauren explained. "Ex-marine or something. He's super strict and paranoid, but it's kept us alive this far. Most of us, that is. Come on, I'll take you there."

"Did you drive here?" Kiri asked as they went back down the stairs. Even if it was the apocalypse, an eleven-year-old driving didn't seem like a great idea.

"Naw, Dad wouldn't let me," Lauren explained. "I rode my bike. It's still faster than the munchers, and it makes less noise than a car anyway."

So they loaded Lauren's bike into the back of the Explorer among all their bags and supplies and headed out, with Lauren giving directions from the front seat. The warehouse was in the heart of the industrial park of New Harmony, a good thirty-three minute drive from the twins' aunt and uncle's house. It was a wonder Lauren had biked the whole way.

There were several automatic weapons trained on them as soon as the Explorer pulled up outside the fortified metal doors leading into the warehouse. The girls saw the guards posted atop the building, training their weapons directly at them.

"Don't shoot," Lauren called in a whisper that carried. "It's just me! Let us in!"

"Who's that with you?" a gruff, masculine voice called back from the roof. There was a distinct accent in the voice, but Carlin couldn't quite place it.

Lauren shaded her eyes. "My cousins and their friend. Now open the damn door before we get eaten by munchers!"

Kiri frowned at her young cousin. "Where did you learn that kind of language?" she demanded. "Your mom would skin you alive if she heard you talking like that."

"Well she's dead. Doesn't matter much now, does it?" Lauren replied dully.

Kiri looked stricken and might have said something else but there was a loud scraping noise then and the enormous metal doors were opened from the inside. Lauren ducked inside quickly, the bag she'd brought from her old house over one shoulder. The twins and Carlin had no choice but to follow her. The two burly men who'd opened the door shut it at once.

The inside of the warehouse was essentially one enormous, cavernous room. There were several tables set up in one corner like a kitchen, and there were makeshift beds set up everywhere else. There were three doors leading off from the main room, and a little walkway that surrounded the top but didn't seem to lead anywhere other than the roof.

There were about fifteen people in this camp, not including those on the roof. Most of them were young, no more than sixteen or seventeen at most. Besides the two men who had opened the door, there were only two women and one man.

The man and one of the women approached them immediately. The man had tears sparkling in his eyes. "Channary! Kiri!" he exclaimed before drawing them into a hearty embrace. "God, we thought we'd never see you alive again!"

"How on earth did you get out?" the woman, who had the same strawberry blond hair as Lauren, asked.

"Lots of running. We've basically been on the run since we left Orono forever ago," Nary muttered. "Thank god you're still alive though. Carly, this is my uncle, Peter, and my cousin Megan. This is my roommate from college, Carlin."

"Nice to meet you." Carlin shook their hands awkwardly. "I wish it could have been under other circumstances."

Peter's smile was grim. "I know what you mean. I-"

He was interrupted by a great hulking beast of a man tromping down the rickety metal stairs from the roof. He was wearing dirty army pants and a sleeveless undershirt. He was wearing an eye patch and smoking a cigarette despite the abundance of children in the badly-ventilated warehouse. He pushed right up to them, no idea of personal space. "And just who the hell are you?" he snarled in that strangely unplaceable accent.

Peter stepped in to try and smooth things over. "These are my nieces, Channary and Kiri Clark. And this is their friend Carlin."

"They came to find us," Lauren piped up timidly, half-hiding behind Megan.

"They're safe," Peter added.

The man sneered at them with his one good eye, blowing cigarette smoke right into their faces. "What the hell kind of names you got?" he demanded gruffly. "They don't sound American."

"Mine and Nary's names are Cambodian," Kiri tried to explain. The man looming over them was giving them all the creeps. "Our mom was a missionary nurse there years ago, and our dad was stationed there during the seventies. And Carlin's a foreign exchange student from Scotland."

The man seemed to think over this explanation for a while. For three full minutes there wasn't a single sound besides two kids about four years old playing with some battered toys in the corner of the room, watched over by the second woman. Finally the man dropped his cigarette to the concrete floor and crushed it with the heel of his army boot. "What the hell do you want with us?"

"We were just looking for our family," Nary said, her temper inevitably flaring. "Where the hell do you get off-"

She was cut off shortly as an enormous hand clenched around her windpipe. Her eyes bulged and she tried to get loose, but the man was too strong for her. Kiri let out an anguished cry and threw herself at the man, but he flung her aside like a rag doll, ignoring the fact that she was pregnant.

"Marshall, stop!" Peter practically begged. "She didn't mean any harm! She's just a kid! Please, let her go!"

The man seemed to think about it for a moment, and eventually he released his hold and Nary crumpled to the floor in a heap, coughing loudly. Carlin was at her side in an instant, helping her sit up, cradling Nary's head in her lap. She was overcome with an instant dislike; she hated this man even more than she hated Merle Dixon.

"Are they staying?" Marshall directed his question to Peter, as if the girls weren't worthy of him.

Peter shrugged meekly. "I guess so?"

Marshall shot them a look from behind his eyepatch, a look of deadly loathing, and stalked off without another word. He tromped back up the metal stairs and was gone. As the door to the roof closed behind him, there was a collective sigh as if everyone had been holding their breath in his presence.

Peter and Megan helped Kiri up while Lauren and Carlin got Nary to her feet. Then they all hobbled over to a series of blow-up mattresses and crates of clothing that had been set up in one of the corners.

"That guy is fucking crazy," Nary complained hoarsely as Carlin helped her sit on one of the mattresses.

Peter nodded sadly. "Yeah. He spent the last several years in Afghanistan. It must have done something to him. He was in New Harmony on leave when the outbreak happened."

"Why do you stay here?" Kiri asked bitterly, one hand on her stomach as if trying to feel if any damage had been done. "Especially with all these kids? He's liable to snap one day and kill everyone."

Megan shook her head, beckoning to one of the four-year-olds playing with the toys. A little boy got up and made his way over to her. "No, it's not like that at all. It's adults Marshall hates. That's why there's so few of us here. He doesn't trust us. Even those like Perry and Valerie," she gestured to the other woman and one of the men who had opened the door, "and they've been with him since the outbreak started. He doesn't mind the kids. He likes them better."

"The really little ones, she means," Lauren piped up bitterly. "He hates me."

"That's because you're too smart for your own good," her father told her, ruffling her blond hair. She jerked away in annoyance.

Megan fixed Kiri with a sad smile. "So you're pregnant? How far?"

"About four months or so, as best as I can guess," Kiri answered. "I know it's possibly the worst time ever to have a baby, but what can you do?"

"Make the best of it, that's all," Megan said, pulling the little boy to her. "Grant, do you remember your cousins Nary and Kiri? They're here to visit. And they brought a friend. This is Carlin. Can you say hi?"

The little boy grinned shyly and hid his face in Megan's arm, refusing to speak. "This is my son, Grant. He's a little shy sometimes."

"So what happened to your parents?" Peter asked softly.

Nary grimly repeated the story for her uncle and cousin, which they listened to with stony faces. With everything that had been going on lately, they must have expected it. When she concluded with her mother's suicide and their decision to head to Indiana, Peter sighed heavily.

"At least you girls made it out. That's more than a lot of people can say," he muttered. "You're safe here. We can set you up some pallets near ours."

Kiri frowned, hands still on her abdomen. "You can't be serious, Uncle Peter. We can't stay here! Not with that maniac!"

"He may be harsh and he doesn't really trust people," Peter conceded. "But he's really good at keeping us safe. It's our best option."

The pregnant blond looked around the warehouse with disgust. "This? This is your best option?"

Peter's look was grave. "Look, Kiri, I've got to do what's best for what's left of my family. I'd love for you to stay here too, but you're a grown woman. You make decisions for yourself."

Kiri glanced briefly at Nary, but her twin, after a quick look in the direction Marshall had gone, shook her head. "I'm staying with Uncle Peter and Megan."

Kiri looked at Carlin next. "I go where you guys tell me," she answered, trying to keep her thoughts from flashing back to Daryl and the survivor camp outside of Atlanta. It seemed like it had been ages since she'd seen him instead of a few days.

"Fine," Kiri finally agreed with an explosive sigh. "But if that guy tries anything else to hurt anybody, we're out of here. _All _of us."

So Perry and the other man, an African-American guy by the name of Walter, opened the big metal door again and Nary, Carlin, Kiri, Megan, and Lauren grabbed all of their belongings out of the back of the Explorer. Though they left the tent behind, they grabbed all the sleeping pads, pillows, and blankets they had been given at the last camp.

They were making their beds when a few of the survivors came over to introduce themselves. The other woman's name was Valerie, and she had been an elementary school teacher before the outbreak. Then there were Perry and Walter, who seemed to be good friends despite having not known one another before. Besides Grant and Lauren, there were about eight kids. Grant seemed to be the youngest at four. David, Perry's son, was seven. Brittany, Nicholas, and Tina, who were Walter's children, were nine, eleven, and fifteen. Faith, thirteen; Ryan, sixteen; Betsy, five; and Patrick, nine, were all orphans who had stumbled into the group somehow.

Despite her intense dislike for Marshall, Carlin couldn't help but appreciate his taking care of all these kids. She wasn't a kid person herself, so it wasn't something she would have been able to do.

Though Marshall didn't come down again for several hours, it wasn't long before Perry and Walter headed up to the roof and the two men who had been on guard duty came down. They were introduced as Ben and Oliver. It wasn't five minutes after they'd come down that Nary was flirting profusely with Ben.

"Guess she's not so caught up on Shane," Kiri whispered to Carlin.

There was no stove or oven (or electricity or gas with which to use them even if there had been), so cooking dinner became a primal activity. There were three doors leading away from the main part of the warehouse. One led to what had at one time been an office but was now Marshall's private sleeping quarters. Another led to a public restroom. The last led to an enclosed courtyard that was completely protected from the dead ones, even if it was very small. Here Peter and Oliver built up a fire and they cooked canned goods for everyone.

Carlin found herself sitting next to the man called Oliver while they ate baked beans and grilled chicken. He looked at her over his paper plate with warm brown eyes that crinkled when he smiled. "So, Carlin, right? Where are you from?"

"Scotland," she answered, pushing beans around her plate with a plastic fork. "I was doing an exchange program here when the outbreak happened. What about you?"

"I'm from Wisconsin originally, but I was living in Jersey when everything started," he explained. "I was traveling through New Harmony for business but I got detained, and I've been here since."

"And what is it that you do for a living, Oliver?" She was smiling too.

He set his empty plate aside. "I was a CPA. Now I'm a survivalist." He flashed her a grin. "I guess we all are."

There were only camping lanterns inside the warehouse, since the electricity hadn't worked in nearly two months. It seemed that, even though some of the kids belonged to Perry and Walter, it was Megan and Valerie's job to put all the kids to sleep. Now that the twins and Carlin were there, Megan asked them to help out too. It was easy for Kiri, who, especially now that she was expecting, had a warm and mothering nature anyway. It was a bit tougher for Nary and Carlin, but they tried. Eventually all the kids were in bed, even the older ones, and the adults could go to sleep themselves.

Carlin curled up on her air mattress underneath piles of blankets (it was getting much colder now that October was coming to a close and the warehouse certainly wasn't heated), but she couldn't sleep. She wondered what Daryl was doing.

**Yay! Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry it took me a bit longer to update this. My baby boy has been sick so I've been taking care of him. Anyway, thanks for your lovely reviews! I hope you enjoy this chapter! **

It was impossible to tell when it was finally morning, but Carlin got up when everyone else in the warehouse started to move about and get dressed. Grant, David, and Betsy, the youngest of the children, seemed to have no volume control. Carlin rolled out of her makeshift bed, feeling more exhausted than when she'd gone to bed, and pulled clean clothes on behind a curtain Megan and Valerie had erected for privacy.

The lanterns were lit, giving the cavernous warehouse a warm glow, and tins of fruit were passed around for breakfast. The group of survivors seemed friendly enough, asking the girls questions about where they were from and how they'd gotten along since the outbreak. They seemed impressed that the girls had made it from the north to the south and back again alive.

And then the door leading to Marshall's room swung open with a bang and everyone fell silent at once, even the littlest kids. It seemed as though everyone held their breath while Marshall surveyed the group with his one good eye, then snorted and stomped up the stairs. When the door to the roof swung shut behind him, the tense atmosphere evaporated and Megan found another can of peaches for Grant.

Carlin learned very quickly that the number one rule at the warehouse survival camp was don't piss off Marshall. And he had a lot of triggers that could set him off. Whenever he was around, the entire group tiptoed on eggshells. Thankfully he spent most of his time out on the roof. There were always two guards posted besides him, around the clock. When he found out that the girls had guns, and that they knew how to use them, he seemed to resent them a little less and they were incorporated into the guard rotation. It meant the others were able to get a little more sleep.

They fell into a sort of pattern at the warehouse. They were never really content with the threat of Marshall hanging over them all the time. Nary, at least, found an outlet in Ben. As the days turned into weeks, Nary and Ben's harmless flirting grew into something more serious.

That's why, about halfway through November, Nary drew Kiri and Carlin aside in the courtyard. The temperature had dropped considerably from when they'd arrived, bringing with it a hint of snow. Already there was frost on the ground, even though they were in the southern part of Indiana.

"I need your help," she told her sister and her friend, smiling eagerly.

Kiri, both arms folded across her stomach like a shelf, looked wary. "What do you want?"

Nary clasped her hands together pleadingly. "I _have_ to get laid," she begged.

"Sorry, I don't swing that way," Carlin replied with a straight face.

"Don't be a jerk." Nary rolled her eyes. "I'm talking about Ben, obviously. I need your help to have sex."

"What, has it been so long you need instructions?" Kiri cracked.

Nary was getting frustrated. "Just shut up! Both of you!"

"A nice way to treat the people she's asking for help," Carlin muttered to Kiri, who smiled and nodded in agreement.

"The only place with any privacy in this hellhole is Marshall's room," Nary explained. "I need your help to sneak in."

Carlin held up her hands. "Uh uh. No way. That guy is a nut, Nary. If he catches you, he literally might kill all of us."

Kiri nodded vigorously. "It's a suicide plan, Nary. Carlin is right. Trust me, I know how much you want to have sex, but there is no way."

"Just hear me out. It's a valid plan," Nary insisted. "One of you can distract him while he's on guard duty and the other can stand watch outside the office door in case he comes back too soon. And we'll make it a quickie, I promise."

Carlin and Kiri exchanged worried looks. They knew that once Nary got a plan in her head, no matter how stupid it was, there was no going back. They may as well go along with her instead of entrusting it to someone else in the camp, someone who didn't know Nary as well.

Kiri sighed and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "When is this going to go down?"

Nary beamed. "Tomorrow night. After everyone else has gone to bed. That way we won't draw too much attention to ourselves."

"Just don't forget," Carlin warned with a sinking feeling. "There are kids here too."

"We'll be quiet!" Nary promised in a sing-song voice, dancing her way back into the warehouse.

Carlin couldn't help but feel apprehensive about the whole thing. She knew that if something could go wrong, it probably would. Especially if Nary was involved.

It ended up being her turn for night guard duty, so it was arranged that, when she and Oliver joined Marshall on the roof, Kiri would station herself outside the door to Marshall's room.

Lauren and Tina, who were quick and efficient, had managed to get into a department store not far from the warehouse and swipe coats for everyone since the weather had turned so cold so quickly. Carlin was infinitely grateful as she settled down next to Oliver with the now-familiar weight of a shotgun in her lap.

They had been at the warehouse for about a month now, and Oliver had proven to be a good friend to Carlin. His easy-going sense of humor and laid-back attitude about life, even an apocalyptic life, was a nice change from the twins.

He glanced down at her as they settled into the folding chairs they had been using for guard duty. "You cold?" he asked. "That coat doesn't look warm enough."

"It'll do," Carlin shrugged, shivering nonetheless. "It's a lot colder than this back where I'm from."

"Here, scoot closer," Oliver offered. "The body heat will keep you warm."

Carlin hesitated briefly, then scooted her chair closer. Her thoughts, as always, were with Daryl Dixon. Would he care that she was cuddling with someone else, even if it was only for practical purposes? She thought, with his exploding temper, that he would definitely care.

There was a long pause while Carlin was occupied with thoughts of Daryl.

Oliver, still looking at her, broke the silence. "You okay? You seem awfully quiet this evening."

Carlin glanced over her shoulder at Marshall, who was seated on the opposite end of the roof. He always completed his guard shifts alone; the others made him nervous and antsy. "I'm fine," she answered. "Just... discontent." She gestured vaguely. "I know there's not much we can do, but this is no way to live. Pretty soon we're all just going to shrivel up and die."

Oliver draped an arm around her shoulder, something he had not done before in all of their time together. "I know what you mean. But this is life now. We've just got to make the best of it."

Carlin frowned into his shoulder. This was not at all the way she had wanted their relationship to go. "Oliver-" she began, but he cut her off by pressing his lips against hers fiercely.

Despite not having been touched romantically in a month, Carlin felt nothing at the kiss. All she could think of was that she'd rather be with Daryl. She knew she shouldn't think those things. Daryl was about as unsuitable a companion for her as could be. Oliver was much more appropriate. He was of the same social status, he was around her age, he was alarmingly intelligent. And he was there. Besides, she had only known Daryl for a few days. But somehow she felt a deep connection with Daryl that couldn't be shaken.

She put her hand on Oliver's shoulder and gently pushed him away. "Oliver," she tried again, feeling suddenly like she wanted to cry.

He sighed and pulled back, though he didn't remove his arm. "There's someone else, isn't there?"

Carlin was almost surprised by his perceptiveness, but, like she'd noted, he was very intelligent. Wordlessly, she nodded.

"I figured it was worth a try." He finally looked at her, and his smile was warm and shy and friendly despite the obvious rejection. "I haven't met a girl I've had this much chemistry with in a long time. Even before the outbreak. Figures you've already got someone."

Carlin couldn't help but smile back. If she'd never met Daryl, she probably would have been quite content to be with Oliver. If she'd asked Nary or Kiri, they would have told her to go with Oliver in a heartbeat. He was younger, better-looking, and had a better personality. But she didn't have a choice anymore.

She glanced over her shoulder in Marshall's direction, and then did a double take. The chair Marshall usually sat in was empty.

Carlin jumped up at once, horrified. She'd had one job to do and she hadn't done it, and now her best friends might be in horrible danger. "Oh god," she moaned.

Oliver was on his feet too, looking worried. "Carlin? What's going on? What's wrong?"

"Marshall," was all she managed to get out before she was sprinting for the door. She took the precarious metal steps two at a time, Oliver on her heels, but she was too late. In the dim glow from the single lantern that stayed lit throughout the night, she saw Marshall approach his door. Kiri was sitting in a chair outside it, looking half-asleep.

"Move," Marshall barked at her shortly.

Kiri jerked in her chair, looking suddenly wide awake and very alarmed. "I-uh..." she stammered, trying to think of a plausible lie.

"Marshall!" Carlin called loudly, probably waking up half the camp. She didn't care. "There's something you need to see! Come quick!"

The one-eyed behemoth gave Kiri one last suspicious look, then turned and climbed back up the stairs. There was of course nothing to show him when they came out onto the roof again, which only put him in a worse mood. But at least Carlin had given Nary and Ben enough time to sneak out of the office. They were safe for the time being.

**Jeez, Nary really can be annoying, huh? I had forgotten how much I didn't like her. I should probably make her more likable XD**

**Please review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I'm really sorry for the delay in updating. My doc manager has been acting up for like the past two months and it's still not fixed but I'm gonna try and get over it to update this story. It's weird with season 2 being on air now, because my story sorta coincides with it? A little bit? **

**Anyway, I don't own most of the people in this story but I do own everyone in this chapter! **

None of them wanted a repeat of the office affair, so even Nary kept her head down over the next few weeks. November rolled into December, bringing the snow with it. The warehouse was always freezing these days; no amount of blankets could ward off the chill entirely.

That was why Marshall decided it was time to make a major supply run. Thus far it had only been Lauren and Tina going out for supplies, and they couldn't carry a whole lot back. But now that it was colder, they really needed the supplies. The colder temperatures made the dead ones, or munchers as the warehouse camp liked to call them, move more slowly. So they all suited up, guns were handed out, and they got ready to leave the safety of the warehouse for a few hours.

There were only a handful of the group not going. Obviously the younger kids were going to stay behind. Grant, Betsy, and David were too young to be of any use. Marshall elected Kiri to stay behind. One, because she was six months pregnant by this point and could hardly move faster than the dead ones. Two, because she was one of the handiest with a long-range weapon.

Everyone bid each other goodbye and Kiri, with the help of David and Betsy, closed the heavy iron door behind them.

Carlin wasn't thrilled about this trip. She knew the camp really needed the supplies, but it seemed like such a danger taking so many of them. The more of them there were, the more dead ones they would draw the attention of. She gripped her weapon tightly in her hands, ungloved so she could handle the gun more expertly, and followed the line of survivors through snowy alleys and around abandoned buildings.

The town of New Harmony was like a ghost town these days. There were hardly any dead ones to be seen shuffling through the snow, which was easily eight or nine inches deep already. The ones they did encounter were practically frozen. They probably wouldn't have been a danger even if they'd been standing right next to one.

Still, Carlin reminded herself firmly, there was no need to let her guard down or to get cocky. Those dead bastards were dangerous, frozen or no. She already had a bad feeling about today.

The department store was five blocks from the abandoned warehouse, five long blocks that only seemed to get longer in the snow. They were all rather inadequately dressed. Though they all had heavy winter coats thanks to Lauren and Tina, there were no long johns among them and only the two girls, Tina and Lauren, had snow shoes. Carlin's sneakers, socks, and jeans were soaked by the time they'd made it past one block.

When they reached the department store, the automatic doors at the front had been locked down when the power shut off, but Lauren and Tina led the way around to the loading dock, where they had managed to pry a door open. The group of survivors slipped in, out of the cold. It was dark inside, and they paused a moment to get their bearings and let their eyes adjust.

"Alright," Marshall instructed them. "It'll be faster to split up, but it's safer to stick together. We'll go to the luggage department first, and get bags to pack in. Don't get anything you can't carry on your back or over your shoulder. The wheeled bags will just be shit in this weather.

"Once we have the bags, we'll hit up the clothing department. Everyone get the clothes you will need. And I don't think I should have to remind anyone that we don't have time to try things on. Clark," he barked at Nary. "You'll be in charge of getting clothes for your sister. Valerie can get Betsy's, and Megan can be in charge of Grant's. Then we'll go to the camping supplies. Everyone understand?"

Wordlessly, the group nodded as one.

"Good." Marshall's good eye flashed as he cocked his weapon. "Once we get out there, be silent. I don't want to draw any unwanted attention." With that final declaration, he kicked open the door leading from the loading dock into the department store.

The group moved quickly and efficiently, their weapons always ready. They half-ran, crouched over, moving in a single-file line behind Marshall. He seemed to have already memorized the layout, because he took them to the luggage section without any fuss with store maps.

They reached for the largest duffel bags that they could carry and moved quickly on to the clothing departments. Though it would have been faster and more efficient to split up to the different sections, Marshall's word was law and they stuck together. They hit the menswear first, where Marshall, Ben, Oliver, Perry, and Walter grabbed handfuls of warmer clothes. While they worked silently, the women and children stood guard.

When the men's bags were bursting with clothes, they moved on to the larger section of women's clothes. Carlin holstered her handgun and, unzipping the maroon duffel she'd grabbed, began shoving clothing into it without really looking. She grabbed mostly sweaters, only briefly glancing at the tags to make sure they were the right size. She really hoped she'd be able to find a pair of water-proof winter boots before they left.

She was so busy thinking about the boots she wanted that she didn't notice the dead one. It was missing its lower half, so no one, even the men and children on guard duty, noticed as it silently crawled towards them through the bulging racks of brightly-colored clothes. And then Tina let out a blood-curdling scream as the dead one took a chunk right out of her ankle.

"Tina!" Walter shrieked as his eldest child hit the tiled floor with a howl of pain, blood spurting from her leg.

Marshall didn't hesitate. He lifted his weapon, which happened to be a machine gun reserved for special outings like this one, and fired away. The noise was deafening. The bullets ricocheted off of everything, hitting zombie and human alike. Their crew dropped like flies under Marshall's vindictive hand.

"Stop!" Megan and Valerie were shrieking, throwing themselves at Marshall. "They're just kids! They're just kids!" The kids Marshall had worked so hard to protect were quickly joining Tina's now lifeless body on the floor: Faith, Patrick, Brittany, and Nicholas. They weren't the only victims, either, as Marshall continued his blind massacre. Walter, Ben, and Oliver, all trying to protect the kids, had thrown themselves into the melee. It was impossible to tell through the shouting and smoke whether they had made it through alive.

When Marshall ran out of bullets in the machine gun, he threw it aside and drew his handgun. Those still alive could see the sheer madness in his one good eye. With two shots that seemed to take two seconds, he put bullets through Megan and Valerie's brains, right between the eyes.

Peter howled in agony as he watched his niece slump to the floor, dead before she hit it, and he threw himself at Marshall too. He soon joined her.

Lauren watched the whole event unfold with quickly-escalating horror, and in the end it was she who stepped forward, settled her rifle against the back of Marshall's head, and ended the massacre.

Carlin hardly trusted herself to breathe. There was blood everywhere. A goddamn fucking slaughter. There weren't many of them left. She, Nary, Lauren, Perry, and Ryan were the only ones still alive. But there wasn't time to mourn. Already there were dozens of dead ones pressing in on them from all sides, drawn by the gunshots and the screams.

"We've got to get out of here," Perry said, his voice trembling. The weapon in his hands was shaking too. "Quick, this way!"

It was all she could do to keep a grip on her handgun and run, Carlin thought bitterly. Tears were stinging at her eyes but if she wanted to survive she had to push basic human emotion aside for a moment. They ran flat-out now, no need for stealth. They flew down the stationary escalators, using the maze-like layout of the department store to their advantage. They only had to fire a few shots before they burst through the loading dock door and into the freezing afternoon.

Though they were free from the department store, other dead ones were gathering quickly. Despite the painful stitch in her side, Carlin pressed on after the others, clenching her teeth, fighting back tears.

It seemed to take them forever for the much-smaller group to get back to the warehouse. "Open the door!" Nary was shrieking. "Open the goddamn door!" The dead ones were following them back to their hideout. They would all already be dead if it weren't for the thick snow impeding the dead ones.

It seemed to take forever, but eventually Kiri and David got the metal door opened and what was left of the survivor camp stumbled inside. The doors were shut and barred again immediately.

Kiri looked over the meager bags they still had with them, most only half-full. "What the hell happened?" she demanded warily. "Where is everyone?"

"Dead," Nary said shortly, watching almost bitterly as Perry flung his arms around his son, who had been waiting back at the warehouse with Kiri. "A dead one got Tina while we were in the department store and Marshall started shooting everyone."

"_What_?"

Carlin nodded miserably. "We knew there was something off about that guy the second we arrived. He shot _everyone_, Kiri. Tina was the only one who got attacked by a dead one."

Kiri swallowed. It looked difficult. "What about Megan and Uncle Peter?"

Nary looked away and couldn't answer. Kiri burst into loud sobs, though she was the only one who was able to cry.

It was a long day. They tried to resume as normal a life as they could, distributing the few articles of clothing they had managed to bring back and having a meal together. Everyone was very quiet, and it was not at all like the semi-cheerful meals they had enjoyed before.

As they were getting ready for bed, Perry cleared his throat and said, "David and I are leaving tomorrow morning."

"What? Why?" Nary's voice was shrill.

Perry looked away, down at his young son. "We can't do this anymore. It was hard enough when there were a lot of us, but staying here is just suicide. We've got family in Wisconsin. We're going to head there."

"You know that's a long shot," Nary pointed out.

The man only gestured to her sister and cousin. "You lucked out, didn't you? Why shouldn't we? We'll wait for the munchers surrounding the warehouse to disband a bit, but then we'll be leaving. You should get out of here too. It's not safe anymore."

Nary, Carlin, and Kiri exchanged worried glances. "We could go back to the survivor camp in Atlanta," Kiri suggested. "I think that would be our safest plan." The other two agreed with her silently.

But then there was the question of what to do with the remaining children. Lauren and Grant, as Kiri and Nary's cousins, would obviously come with them. But then there were Ryan and Betsy, both of whom had been orphaned for months. Betsy looked at them with innocent blue eyes, too young to really understand what was going on. But Ryan was sixteen, nearly an adult, and he looked away with his mouth set in a grim line, like he was sure they'd abandon him too.

"Well, that's it then, kiddos." Carlin forced a brief smile. "I guess we're heading to Atlanta as soon as we can."

Ryan chanced a glance up. "All of us?

"Kiri's arm went around his shoulders comfortingly. "All of us."

**DUNDUNDUN! Not really a cliffhanger, actually... anyway please review XOXO**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry for the brief hiatus everyone! Please enjoy! **

Though Perry had wanted to make a clean escape the following morning, they found when they went up onto the roof that the warehouse was completely surrounded by dead ones. They weren't as vicious as they had been the day before, but there were still way too many of them to chance going out.

They had to spend another week in the warehouse waiting for the dead ones to thin out, but at least it gave them a chance to pack up as much of the supplies at the warehouse as they could. It was a tense, awkward time. Everyone was still mourning the loss of so many of their friends, and Perry was slowly distancing himself from the others as though by doing so it would hurt less when they finally parted ways.

That time came early one morning, when it was so cold that even the few remaining dead ones hanging around the warehouse wouldn't be any threat. Perry and David left first, heading off down the street without looking back. And then it was just the girls and their new charges.

They loaded their belongings into the back of the Explorer, Lauren and Ryan easily taking care of any dead one that meandered too close with baseball bats and axes. And then they scrambled in. Nary slid behind the wheel, as usual, and Carlin got the front passenger seat. Kiri took the middle seat with Betsy on one side of her and Grant on the other, while Ryan and Lauren took the back. With Carlin navigating, they got on the road towards Atlanta again.

Because of the snow (and the lack of snow plows on the highways and interstates), it took them an entire week of driving thirty miles an hour to reach the abandoned rock quarry where the Atlanta survivors had camped. Despite all the tragedy that had happened in New Harmony, Carlin couldn't help but feel excited.

It felt sort of like she was coming home, which was a strange thing to think, she knew. They'd spent nearly three months at the warehouse camp in New Harmony and only a few days at the camp outside Atlanta, but she supposed it was Daryl. She couldn't wait to see his face when they arrived. The endless driving became even more unbearable.

But when they arrived at what had once been the Atlanta survivor's camp, they found it deserted. The snow, which wasn't quite as abundant that far south, still covered whatever tire tracks might have been left.

The three older girls shared a worried look. "You guys stay in the car," Nary told the kids as she unbuckled her seatbelt. "We'll be right back." She, Kiri, and Carlin slipped out of the Explorer, wrapping their heavy coats more tightly about them.

"What do you think happened?" Kiri asked in a voice hardly more than a whisper, looking around at the deserted site.

"They obviously left of their own accord," Carlin pointed out, trying to think rationally through the blinding haze that was currently clouding her mind. She had been so excited to see him, to see Daryl. The disappointment was almost worse than dying. "Everything was packed away, so they probably moved on to another, safer place."

Nary pushed her long blond hair under the hood of her coat. "What's that?" On top of the hill nearby was a large, unusually-shaped object. Though it was covered with hard-packed snow, it seemed to be bright red.

The girls traipsed through the snow, soaking the legs of their jeans in the process, and swiped the snow off the object. It was a bright red car, probably quite expensive when new but now stripped and forgotten.

Kiri frowned, wiping snow from her hand off on her jacket. "Did they have this when we were here?"

"No," Nary shook her head. "I'd remember a car this nice. But it's been months since we've been here. It's not that surprising that we wouldn't recognize it."

Her twin continued to frown. "Weird, though, that they'd strip it and not use it." She stopped suddenly. "What's this?" As they brushed more and more snow off, they found what looked like a soaked piece of paper adhered to the side of the car. Kiri carefully peeled it off; it was so wet that it practically fell apart in her delicate hands.

"What the hell is that?" Nary demanded, wrinkling her nose.

Kiri looked closely. "It looks like a piece of paper. And it's got some writing on it, but it's too damaged to make out what it says."

Carlin hardly dared hope. "Do you think they left us a note telling us where they went? So we could find them?"

"Maybe," Kiri answered evasively, not wanting to get her friend's hopes up. "First we have to be able to decipher it."

"Can we even do that?" Nary asked next. "It looks in pretty bad shape..."

Kiri shrugged. "No idea. We've got to let it dry first."

So they returned to the Explorer and locked themselves in, and Kiri laid the soggy piece of paper over one of the air vents and turned the heat on high.

"What's going on?" Ryan asked from the very back of the car. He was a tall, gangling boy who had been going through a growth spurt recently. His shaggy, sandy hair was in need of a trim, and he always had a million questions. "What are we doing now?"

"We're going to spend the night here," Kiri answered, glancing back worriedly at Lauren. Since her father's death back in New Harmony, Lauren had become even more withdrawn and introverted. She said hardly a word these days, even with the others were especially sweet to her. "We'll figure out what to do in the morning."

Carlin didn't sleep at all that night, even though she was exhausted. She was full of bitterness and hope. She had really thought that she'd be spending the night in Daryl's arms, and here she was no closer to finding him than she'd been back in Indiana. She kept glancing at the little ratty piece of paper, hoping, praying to whatever god might still be out there that the note held something of importance.

**Wow this is really stinking short. If I get a few reviews I'll post the next chapter tomorrow. Hell, I might do that anyway because this is so short. But review please! Thanks!**


	11. Chapter 11

**So my wonderful hubby took me to a concert for St. Patty's day! It was so sweet! We had to leave my baby at my sister's for the night (it's the first time he's been away from us at night) but he had fun! My sister and her husband spoil him haha**

**TragicCure: thanks!**

**SaraLostInes: I'm glad!**

**Azalia Fox Knightling: I don't think this counts as updating soon :/ I'll do better I promise!**

**SleepyHeather: yeah, I think that's why I ended up killing everyone. I like OCs too much for my own good haha**

**ShiveringTree: Thank you!**

**Davee: yeah, that's Carlin's blind spot. Don't worry, though! Daryl will be back!**

**Alina Maxwell: thanks so much! **

**Valerie Mackin: I've never read City of Ember... is it good? I'm always looking for suggestions for new books XD**

**WhisperInTheRain: yay! thanks!**

**SharonH: thank you**

The moment of truth came when it was fully light the following morning, which didn't happen until about eight or nine o'clock because it was the heart of winter. Then Kiri peeled the now crunchy piece of paper off the vent and tried to make out what it said while the others crowded around her eagerly. Even though it was dry now, the ink had run so badly when it was wet that it was nearly impossible to make anything out.

"This word is _don't_," Ryan said, furrowing his brows in concentration. "And there's the word _going_."

"This here is just a bunch of letters." Kiri pointed to a small section of barely discernible letters. "C - D - C."

Nary slammed her palm against the steering wheel in frustration. "There isn't a word that has those letters next to each other! This is just garbage!"

Her twin frowned. "What if it's not part of a word, but a word all on it's own? What if they're talking about _the_ CDC?"

"The what?" Carlin demanded, hardly daring to hope.

"The Center for Disease Control," Nary explained, suddenly not looking quite as angry. "It's in Atlanta. Shouldn't be far from here, actually."

Carlin's heart was pounding again. "So you think they went there? To this CDC place?"

Kiri nodded. "It's a damn good idea. If anybody's coming up with a vaccine to this mess - one that works, that is - they'll be doing it at the CDC. It's got to be well-fortified and it's probably well-armed. If Shane is in charge, there's a good shot that's where they went."

There was a long pause while everyone let this new information sink in.

Then Betsy, in her innocent little girl voice, said, "Is that where we're going then?"

The older girls exchanged a look. "Yep." And Nary put the Explorer into drive and they were off again.

Following the road map they had been using for months now, Carlin carefully plotted the way from the outskirts of Atlanta to the CDC. It was slow going because of the snow on the highways, and they reached their destination right at dusk.

Or, they reached what had once been their destination. Carlin couldn't imagine what the CDC had looked like before, but there was nothing there now except an enormous pile of charred rubble. It looked like an explosion had taken place there, though how or for what reason they could only guess.

They sat helplessly in the Explorer about thirty yards back from the disaster site, watching as the sun sank below the western horizon. This had been their last lead. Despite herself, Carlin felt tears stinging her eyes.

Kiri, ever-perceptive, saw this and reached out a quick hand to take Carlin's. "Don't worry. They're safe," she promised. "They had all those vehicles, right? They're all gone, and that means that, even if the Atlanta survivors were here when this place blew up, they got out safely."

"But we're never going to find them." Carlin's tone was bitter, helpless. She wished they had never gone to Indiana. She knew that was an ungrateful thought, but it was there all the same. "We have no idea where they've gone."

Kiri frowned, trying to think logically. "Well, it's pretty doubtful that they headed back the way they came from," she said slowly. "So I'm sure they headed further west. We can try that too. We may come across them."

"Maybe," Carlin said doubtfully, but it was all the plan they had. It was either keep moving or get eaten. So Nary turned the Explorer back onto the road and they were off on another wild goose chase.

The road leading northwest from the CDC was, like all the others now, lined with abandoned cars and piled high with snow. The going was slow, even with the Explorer in four-wheel drive.

Nary and Carlin spoke little as the days wound on, passing signs for unfamiliar Georgia towns that were, like all the others, deserted now. Kiri, sitting in the back between the two really little kids, sang children's songs and tried to keep them entertained with the battered toys they had salvaged from the warehouse camp. Sometimes she even read aloud from their storybooks, but those tales grew old and fast. To their credit, Grant and Betsy behaved very well. They never complained about having to ride in the car for so long, even though they were so young. Ryan talked a lot, mostly boasting about things he'd done back in high school before the outbreak. Lauren, like Nary and Carlin, spoke very little. The older girls were really starting to worry about her.

They crossed the state border nearly two weeks later, passing a rusted sign that welcomed them to Tennessee. They had only been in the state for a day when they came across an RV, plowing down the highway from the opposite direction.

"People!" Betsy cheered from beside Kiri.

"Live ones, at least," Ryan added grimly.

Kiri, an arm draped around Grant and Betsy's shoulders, peered anxiously at the RV. "What do you think?" she asked Carlin and her sister. "Should we stop?"

Carlin put her face up close to the windshield, trying to peer through the falling snow. "They're slowing too," she noted. "We better decide soon if we're going to bypass them."

"If we didn't have the kids, I'd say we stop," Nary said, frowning. Dusk was falling so, even with the headlights on, it was starting to get hard to see anything. "But I don't know if I'd risk it with them..."

Kiri frowned. "We've got plenty of guns. We ought to at least see who they are. I can stay here with the kids."

Carlin and Nary looked at each other in the steadily-growing gloom, frowning. Then they reached for their weapons (an 8 millimeter each, Carlin's baseball bat, and Nary's sturdy metal hoe) and let themselves out of the car.

The RV had rolled to a stop about thirty yards from them, the bright lights of its high beams nearly blinding. Then the engine cut off, though the lights remained, and the door opened. The girls held up their guns, ready, waiting.

"Don't shoot, I'm coming out," a masculine voice called.

"Just move slowly," Carlin barked, and she and Nary didn't lower their weapons.

The man who emerged was maybe twenty-three or twenty-four, dressed in faded jeans, heavy work boots, and a gray sweatshirt. He carried a rifle in his hand, but it was down by his side. "Don't shoot," he repeated.

"Put your gun down," Nary called.

"Put _your_ gun down," the man returned. "Why should I trust ya'll if you don't trust me?"

Carlin lowered her semi-automatic a few inches. "I guess we'll just have to go on faith here," she suggested.

Nary didn't seem to like it, but she stowed her gun in the holster at her hip. When he saw them put their guns away, the man seemed to relax a bit. "The name's Vic," he introduced himself. "My friends and I are headed to Florida; we heard the infection's not as bad there. Where are ya'll headed?"

"Nowhere in particular," Nary answered, frowning. "And what you heard about Florida is shit. We went there first."

There was a long pause. "Well damn. Now I don't know what we're going to do."

"Welcome to our world," Nary answered, giving a small smile. Carlin frowned. She recognized that flirtatious undertone in her friend's voice. They had just met this guy and already Nary was moving in.

The man named Vic shivered. "Ya'll want to come in out of the cold?"

Nary looked like she was ready to agree, but Carlin stepped in smoothly. "How many people are you traveling with?"

"There are four of us," Vic answered. "We were roommates back at the University of Wisconsin."

"All guys?" Carlin demanded.

He nodded. "Yeah, but we're all pretty trustworthy guys. I'm sure you're pretty wary of people - we are too - but we're some of the good guys."

Carlin didn't answer, just pursed her lips. Vic had misunderstood her question. He thought she was worried about their safety, but that wasn't the problem. She knew that she and Nary could hold their own against these guys. No, the problem was Nary. The more men she was around, the sluttier she seemed to become. Carlin didn't hold it against her as a person; Nary was a big girl and could make her own decisions in life. But in a situation like this, where every encounter could be their last, it was a little inopportune.

But there wasn't much she could do other than follow Vic and Nary up the steps into the RV, which was pleasantly warm and well-lit. It was long and narrow. There was a bedroom at the back with a door and a bathroom with a shower, a small kitchen with a table that could turn into a bed and a bunk above the driving console.

Three young men were sitting at the table, each with a bottle of beer in hand. They looked up as their friend entered with the two girls.

"These are Pete, Wesley, and Luke," Vic introduced his friends. "Guys, these are the girls driving that Explorer..." he trailed off, realizing that they had never told him their names.

"I'm Channary," Nary introduced herself in that overly-friendly, flirtatious way she had. "But you can call me Nary. This is Carlin. We were roommates at the University of Maine."

This started an eager conversation about college. They discussed what they had been studying and what they had wanted to do. The boys scooted over to make room at the table, and Nary didn't hesitate to squeeze in with them.

"I was a Recording Industry major," Nary was explaining expansively. "I wanted to go into music production and-"

Carlin interrupted smoothly. "Uh, Nary? What about the others?"

"There are more of you?" Luke, who was tall and blond and quite ripped, asked eagerly.

Nary nodded disinterestedly. "Yeah, my sister and my cousins and some others. Carlin, why don't you go get them?"

Carlin didn't really want to leave Nary alone with all those strange guys, but Nary was firm. So Carlin pulled her jacket more tightly about her and made the short trek between the RV and the Explorer, her trusty bat in hand.

Kiri was waiting expectantly when she returned, shivering in the dark with the kids. "What's going on?" she demanded as soon as Carlin pulled open the door.

"Nary made some new friends," Carlin sighed. "There are a bunch of college guys on the RV, whose plans are about as concrete as ours."

"College guys?" Kiri repeated. "Great."

"Yeah," Carlin agreed. "So our chances of getting out of here anytime soon are zilch. Not until Nary gets laid."

Betsy tugged on the sleeve of Kiri's jacket, stretched taut over her rotund belly. "What's that mean?" she asked in her innocent little voice.

"Nothing, baby," Kiri answered soothingly. "Just some grownup talk." From the backseat, Ryan snorted derisively. Kiri ignored him and turned back to Carlin. "So what are we going to do?"

"I guess go hang out in the RV for a while," Carlin shrugged. "It's warm in there, and better we use their gas than ours. They have real beds and a real table and a real stove and a real refrigerator. It's better to wait this out over there than here."

Kiri glanced at the kids. "Think it's safe? For them, I mean."

"I think so," Carlin answered. "The guys seem okay, I guess. They're probably starving for human interaction, like we are. And anyway, we've got plenty of guns _and_ we outnumber them, if Lauren and Ryan are armed. I think it's safe enough."

Carlin still didn't like it, but they all clambered out of the Explorer. Lauren and Ryan had their guns handy, scanning the horizon for anything that moved. Kiri took Grant's hand and Carlin lifted Betsy onto her hip and they all traipsed through the snow, at least a foot deep, and let themselves into the RV.

Vic stopped and stared at the newcomers. He was at the refrigerator, getting a beer for Nary. "Oh," he said. "I didn't know you had kids with you."

"This is my twin sister, Kiri," Nary said dismissively, already at ease with the strangers. Their eyes lingered on her pregnant belly but said nothing. "Those are our cousins, Lauren and Grant. And that's Ryan, and that's Betsy. They were with us at the last survivor camp we were at."

"Survivor camp?" repeated the one named Wesley. "You've been at a survivor camp?"

Kiri shrugged out of her coat and bent to help Betsy with hers. "Yeah, we've been with two now. The last one was in Indiana. It...ended badly. We're some of the only ones who got out." She glanced briefly at Lauren, who was glowering at the floor and refusing to take off her coat.

"You must have been through a rough time," said the one called Pete, getting up and offering Kiri his seat. He must have decided that she was worth the attention even if she was nearly seven months pregnant. "Do you want anything to drink?"

It was Luke who brought Carlin a beer, but she politely refused it. Nary was already well on her way to being drunk, and even Kiri was blossoming under the flattering attention. At least one of them needed to stay alert for the kids.

The kids seemed to like the newcomers. Ryan liked them because they handed him a beer right off and even Kiri didn't try to take it away from him, conceding that things like the legal drinking age probably didn't matter anymore. Wesley turned out to be great with kids, entertaining Grant and Betsy. They all tried to invite Lauren into their conversation, but her answers to their questions were short and clipped, and in the end they gave up trying.

It had been dark for several hours already when they decided to start winding things down. Lauren and Betsy were tucked into the bunk above the driving console, with real blankets and real pillows. Wesley and Pete flipped the kitchen table over and made up the bed there, which was given to Ryan and Grant. The bed in the back was big enough for four people, taking over almost the entire room, so it was there that the twins retired with Vic and Pete. Carlin didn't want to think about what was going on behind the closed door, even if she knew there was a partition.

That left Carlin, Luke, and Wesley to find space on the floor of the RV. The girls had brought all their gear over from the Explorer and set up their mattress pads and blowup mattresses and sleeping bags. It was a lot more comfortable than sleeping sitting up in the SUV.

"So where are you from?" Luke asked after they had taken turns changing into nightclothes in the tiny bathroom. Already the younger kids were asleep, though Lauren and Ryan were more than likely still awake.

"Scotland," came the exasperated reply. She knew it wasn't their fault that they didn't know where she was from, but she was getting tired of explaining it. "I was here on an exchange program when the outbreak started."

Luke seemed interested, overly so. His face lit up like a kid's on Christmas morning. "Oh really? What part?"

"Skye," came the tired answer, and apparently the tone in her voice was enough to quiet him down for at least a little bit. She fell into an uneasy sleep, her dreams filled with rough-and-tumble crossbow-wielding maniacs.

**Man, I really don't like Nary. I really created a very unlikeable character. Ah well. **

**So I've been watching season 2 on Sundays (I make daddy distract the munchkin so I can watch undistracted haha I'm such a good mom!) and I don't think I like it so much after the hiatus. I guess I was expecting it to follow the comic a bit, but it doesn't really at all. They're killing off characters I wasn't expecting and not killing off others. I guess I got too attached to the comic :/ **

**And is it just me, or is there something between Carol and Daryl? Is that just me? I really hope that's just me that's picking up those vibes, because that is NOT COOL with me. Just sayin. **


	12. Chapter 12

**I got to meet Norman Reedus this weekend! It prompted me to update! Haha! It makes me wonder if he reads fanfiction about himself o.O**

**WhisperInTheRain: Right? Carol and Daryl would be AWFUL together! But the show is deviating so much from the comic that I have absolutely no idea what could happen! lol**

**Azalia Fox Knightling: I'm glad I'm not the only one who picked up on that vibe :/**

**SharonH: YOUR WAIT IS OVER! 3**

**SaraLostInes: haha I loved your southern accent, it totally made my day! I think it's funny because I'm from the south (I actually go to Atlanta a lot) and NO ONE down here talks like that except the hick trailer trash. It's sort of sad that we're represented like that but funny at the same time lol**

**jerseygirl9766: thank you so much!**

**eloquent dreams: haha they're totally sketch! My problem with this story, I think, is that I went a little bit overboard with all the extra characters. I put in waaaay too many! They're hard enough for me to keep track of, and I'm the one that created them!**

**I hope y'all enjoy this chapter! **

For the first time in a long time, they were able to sleep late the following morning. The girls and their little family were all in need of a good rest, so it was several hours after dawn before they all stumbled out of their respective beds.

Vic stumbled from the back bedroom, followed by an only semi-dressed Nary, and put a pot of coffee - real coffee - on. The strong smell soon filled the narrow, stuffy RV. Carlin hadn't had a good cup of coffee in ages; her mouth was watering.

Nary sank onto the cushioned seat of the kitchen table - it had been moved back from being a bed - and let out an explosively contented sigh.

Her dark-haired friend knew Nary wanted her to ask, so she sighed and complied. "Have a good night?"

"The best," Nary grinned wickedly, running her fingers through her tangled blond locks. She lowered her voice conspiratorially. "Vic is a real tomcat in the sack, if you know what I mean."

"Bleh." Carlin gave Nary a disgusted look. "Can you please keep your sexual encounters to yourself? There's enough in this world to make me sick without that too."

Nary rolled her eyes with that wicked grin. "Can you blame me? It's been so long. I didn't even really get to enjoy that time with Ben..." She trailed off, losing her smile as she thought of the tragedy back in New Harmony. Then she gave herself a shake. "But you can't hold it against me. Sounds like you got some real nice lovin' back outside Atlanta."

Kiri had appeared from the room at the back, wearing an open button-down shirt that was not hers over an extremely tight white tank top, showing off the enormity of her pregnant belly. She clamped a hand down on her sister's shoulder, startling her. The look on Kiri's face was reproving. "Do you have no tact, Nary? Don't bring that up now."

Nary at least had the sense to look abashed. "Sorry," she mumbled. Then she raised her voice to address the boys who had invited them into their RV. "So, do you guys have any food? I'm starving."

Vic grinned over his shoulder at her, opening the refrigerator. "You want to help?"

As Nary vacated her seat to help Vic and the boys cook up something that would feed them all, Kiri slid into it. Betsy crawled almost immediately into what was left of her lap. "You okay?" she asked Carlin anxiously, running her fingers through Betsy's hair. "Nary can be thoughtless sometimes..."

"It's fine." Carlin didn't really want to talk about it. She looked out the window instead of at her friend. It was the first day in quite a while it hadn't been snowing; the day was blindingly bright and looked deceptively warm. She tried to focus on the weather instead of Daryl Dixon and the Atlanta survivors.

It turned out not to be so difficult in the end to distract herself. She had found a very earnest admirer in Luke. He was both handsome and intelligent, but he was not at all her type. He wasn't even discreet about his advances like Oliver had been. He was straightforward and pushy, and Carlin found him getting on her nerves after only a few days of staying with the RV group.

She didn't get much help from the others, either. Nary was so self-absorbed, so wrapped up in her new romance, that she had very little time to spare for any of the others, even her sister or cousins. Kiri wasn't quite as distant, making sure to spend time with the kids every day, but even she liked this lull in danger and was taking advantage of it.

Though it definitely wasn't Carlin's first choice of a hideout, she had to admit that it was decently safe. She wouldn't have thought it, there on the road. But since the highway had been abandoned and since it was so cold, they hadn't seen a single dead one so far. There was a town about ten miles out, one that had been abandoned early on, and they took turns taking the Explorer to the town for supplies when they were running low.

It would have been a pretty decent arrangement, Carlin thought, if it weren't for Luke and his increasingly aggressive advances. She figured it would be pretty easy to keep putting him off with everyone else around, but apparently an audience didn't bother Luke.

They had been staying with the RV group for nearly three weeks now, and Luke's advances were only growing more assertive. After dinner (and drinking what was left of their last alcohol run), they got the kids into bed and started getting ready themselves.

"Carlin, you can have the bed in the back tonight," Nary offered, stifling an expansive yawn.

The brunette panicked suddenly, giving her friend a sharp look. Nary knew that Carlin was fiercely loyal to Daryl, never mind the fact that he might not even be alive anymore. "Nary, I-" she began.

"Don't freak out." Nary rolled her eyes. "You don't have to sleep with anyone. I just figured I'd let you sleep on a bed for once. Besides, I'm too tired tonight to do any fooling around."

So it was that Vic and Nary relinquished their half of the bed in the back in favor of Luke and Carlin, who, it seemed, everyone was starting to assume were a couple despite Carlin's obvious and frequent refusals.

Carlin was not a happy camper as she changed into her nightclothes in the narrow bathroom, dimly lit with barely enough room to turn around in. Despite how hot and stuffy the RV got at night, she chose her most modest nightclothes: a pair of flannel pajama bottoms and a long-sleeved shirt. She even put on her sports bra for good measure. She didn't want Luke thinking their sharing a bed was an invitation to cuddle... or worse.

He was already in bed when she came out of the bathroom. The partition - nothing more than a curtain hanging on a rod - had already been pulled between the two halves of the bed. Carlin wanted to open it, thinking that might deter her admirer a bit, but she knew Kiri and Pete wanted their alone time - as alone as it got in the RV, that is.

Carlin turned off the overhead light and crawled into the open space Luke had left for her, lying down as close to the far wall as she could get. She discreetly bunched up the blankets behind her, making a sort of barrier. She had done everything to dissuade him from his unwanted advances, but he either seemed to not notice or he didn't care.

It took him all of half a minute to push the barrier of blankets smooth and nestle his body against hers. His arms encircled her from the back; she could feel his erection pressed against her rear though their clothes.

"Luke," she whispered shrilly, trying to keep her voice down so as not to disturb the others. She tried to roll over and only succeeded in landing on her back, which he took full advantage of. She couldn't get a word more out before he was lying half on top of her, his warm lips suckling at her neck. "Stop it!" she hissed, slapping him away ineffectually. "I swear to god, if you don't stop this instant I will kick you in the fucking balls!"

Finally Luke relented, hoisting himself up to look down at her though he didn't release her. "What the hell's your problem?" he sneered down at her. "I just want to get laid. We're probably two of the last people on earth. Why is it such a big fucking deal?"

She gave him a hefty shove, and he finally went tumbling back to his proper place in the bed. "What, you think just because it's the end of the world, I'm desperate?" she demanded harshly, her voice like ice. "Even if you were the very last man on earth, I wouldn't sleep with you! The man I love is three times the man you'll ever be!" These last words were spat with such venom that it took Carlin several seconds to realize she'd used the word _love_.

The look Luke turned on her was so derisive that, after weeks of his doting attention, she was completely taken aback. "Fuck you, bitch," he snapped, rolling onto his side and turning his back on her. "You probably aren't any good anyway."

Carlin was seething as she flopped back down, pulling the blankets all the way up to her ears. She really wished Daryl was there. He wouldn't hesitate to put a fist in that prick Luke's face.

She hardly slept at all that night, jerking awake every time Luke got a little too close for comfort. She was one of the first up the next morning, scrambling over him and out into the main part of the RV. Lauren was the only one up already. She was sitting in the front passenger seat, a sketchbook open on her lap, her pencil poised. She didn't seem to have drawn anything yet.

Carlin put a pot of coffee on as Kiri quietly let herself out of the back room. She buttoned Pete's shirt over her rotund belly, the buttons straining. "Hey," she said with a sympathetic look on her face. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Carlin shrugged, busying herself with the coffee filter. "I guess you heard that little scene last night."

"It was a little hard not to," Kiri admitted, in a whisper so as not to wake anyone else. "I can't believe that jerk. I mean, you've been telling him no for weeks now."

Carlin turned the coffee pot on and joined her friend in what little available space there was. "Tell me about it. Some guys just can't take a hint."

Kiri was silent for a moment, then asked, "You're still pretty hung up over Daryl, huh?"

Carlin shrugged. Again, it was a topic she'd rather not discuss. Whenever her thoughts lingered on him too long, she inevitably became alarmingly depressed. She didn't know what she'd do if she never found him again.

"You know, I thought his brother was a creep, but he was okay in my book," Kiri finally said when her friend failed to answer verbally. "It's sort of hard for me to keep going like this," she gestured to her pregnant belly, "but I'll help you find him as soon as I'm able."

Carlin gave Kiri's hand a squeeze. "Thanks," she mumbled.

They were quiet as the others started waking up and pouring cups of coffee. Luke didn't even glance at Carlin, which was completely fine by her. The less she had to do with him the better.

It was just after lunchtime when there was a knock - a _knock_ - on the door of the RV. They had been crowded around the kitchen table, playing a card game with the little kids, when it came. They all froze, even Betsy and Grant, and looked at one another. They all thought the same thing - was it a dead one? But the dead ones didn't knock. So the next question, once it could only be assumed that the thing knocking was a human - a live one - was if it was friendly or not.

Carlin took the initiative, moving when no one else did. She crept towards the door, crouching low so as not to be seen through the window, in order to see who was outside. It was a man, older, with white hair and a beard and a decidedly ugly bucket hat. It was a man Carlin hadn't expected to see again.

"Dale!" she practically screamed, throwing open the door. Dale jumped a bit in surprise, and then a broad grin spread across his naturally-cheerful face.

"Well I'll be!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms open wide. "Carlin? We thought we'd never see you again!"

Carlin flung herself, literally, off the steps and into the old man's arms. "Oh thank god!" she was practically sobbing. "We've been looking for you guys!" She pulled back, struck by the sudden realization. "Is he-?"

Dale grinned and nodded back behind him, where the line of vehicles that were achingly familiar stretched out.

She was off at once, disregarding the fact that she was barefoot in the slushy snow. She was running with wild abandon towards that stupid-looking pickup truck halfway down the line, her hair streaming out behind her. She had goose pimples along her bare arms that she wasn't sure had anything to do with the late January weather.

As she got closer the driver's side door of the pickup opened and Daryl got out slowly. It was really him, she thought in blessed relief. He looked a bit more haggard, a bit leaner, a bit more muscular, but it was him all the same. The look of incredulous disbelief on his face was nearly enough to give her wings.

She threw herself into his arms and pressed her face into his neck to hide the tears that were flooding down her cheeks. His arms tightened around her possessively and he pressed his lips into her hair, not trusting himself yet to speak.

They stood still like that for several moments, everyone else their audience. Then finally he pulled back, examining her face with an expression of awe she couldn't have imagined if she'd tried. She stood on her tiptoes - her feet were frozen by now but she hardly noticed - and pressed her lips to his. He kissed her back, clutching her with an emotion she couldn't quite place.

"What the hell are you doing out here barefoot?" Daryl broke the tense silence, looking down at her bare feet and her jeans - which were soaked nearly to the knees from the snow.

She looked down. Her little pinkie toes were starting to turn blue. "I guess I was just so excited that I forgot to put shoes on..."

"Idiot," he teased with a grin, lifting her up bridal-style in his arms. He tromped over to the front of the line of cars, his boots making squelching noises in the melting snow. The others in the convoy were getting out of their vehicles now. If Carlin hadn't been completely focused on the man whose arms she occupied, she would have noted that there were a few new additions to the group and quite a lot of missing faces.

Lori climbed out of the station wagon, followed by her son and a strange man. "Well, aren't y'all a sight for sore eyes," she said with a weary smile. Nary and Kiri had come out of the RV now, all smiles. They, at least, had remembered to put on shoes. The kids and the boys followed, looking uncertainly at all the new strangers. "What on earth happened to y'all after you left us?"

Nary was about to answer when Shane interrupted smoothly. "This might be a conversation better left for camp," he suggested. "You girls want to camp up with us tonight?"

"We want to join you forever," Carlin said decidedly.

Luke had made his way outside by now and was glaring at Daryl, cradling Carlin as he was, with undisguised loathing. "This guy?" he demanded incredulously. "This is the guy you've been holding out for?"

Carlin returned the glare. "Yep. So I'd appreciate it if you'd stop your advances, which I refused repeatedly."

"You hard of hearing or something?" Daryl demanded, turning an icy blue gaze on Luke now. "Can't keep your hands to yourself?"

Luke puffed up his chest even though he wasn't anywhere near Daryl's size. "What, you're going to stop me?"

Daryl looked for a moment like he was going to pull back his fist and punch Luke in the face, but then suddenly his face split into a broad grin. "Eh, you ain't worth it." There was an audible sigh as everyone who knew him seemed to let out their breath. Still grinning, he bent and pressed his lips to Carlin's again.

"Well, you and your friends are welcome to join us," Shane said seriously, a smile tweaking the corners of his mouth. "We're not going to go far from here. Just until nightfall."

"We're in," Carlin said decisively, glancing at Nary and Kiri. Both girls were smiling, and they nodded.

So it was settled. The twins herded Ryan, Lauren, Betsy, and Grant back into the Explorer with them, and the boys started up their RV. Kiri hesitated before getting into the front passenger seat. "Carlin?" she called. "Are you riding with us?"

"Nope. I'm riding with Daryl," Carlin answered.

Kiri couldn't help but smile. "Betsy wants to ride with you. Is that okay?"

"Of course." Carlin was so happy, so light, that nothing could upset her. Betsy hopped out of the Explorer and toddled over to the pickup truck.

It wasn't until they were safely in the truck (Carlin had gotten her boots from the RV) and on the road, Betsy cuddled up in Carlin's lap, that Daryl spoke. His voice was oddly choked. "What the hell happened to you? I thought I'd never see you again."

"The thought crossed my mind a few times," she admitted, playing with Betsy's soft hair absently. "After we left, we made it up to Indiana to find Nary and Kiri's family. We found her uncle and three of her cousins, and we joined a survivor group there. Then all hell broke loose and almost everybody died." She glanced down at the child clinging to her, nearly asleep. "We took the kids that were left and came back down here. Besides Betsy here, we've got the twins' cousins Lauren and Grant and a kid named Ryan. We came back to the quarry outside Atlanta but you were gone by then. We've just been searching for you since then."

Daryl's hands tightened on the steering wheel but he didn't speak. He still seemed choked up.

Carlin decided to change the subject. "So what happened with your group? There seems to be a lot less people than when we were here before."

Daryl didn't seem to like this topic much better. "Morales and his family left, went to Alabama to try and find their family. Don't know how they ended up. There was a walker attack back at the quarry. We lost Amy, Ed, Hunter, Frank, and Gina in that attack."

Carlin's lower lip trembled at the thought of Amy dead, but she didn't say anything.

"After we left the quarry we ended up at the CDC," Daryl continued, reaching over and placing his free hand on her knee comfortingly. "Jacqui died there."

"Yeah, we stopped there," Carlin said, remembering suddenly. "What on earth happened? It was like ground zero or something!"

The look Daryl flashed her was grim. "You don't want to know." He hesitated, then continued. "We lost Donna two days ago."

Carlin looked down at the sleeping child. "What about Merle?"

Now Daryl was definitely angry. "He's gone. Back in Atlanta." He didn't elaborate, so Carlin didn't press the matter. At least not yet.

"What about those new people out there?" she asked instead. "There were a handful I didn't recognize from last time..."

He seemed to think for a moment. "The black guy is Tyrese. He's here with his daughter and her boyfriend. And that guy with Lori is her husband."

"Her husband?" Carlin repeated, startled. "I thought she was with Shane..."

Daryl shrugged. "Turns out her husband was alive the whole time. And now she's pregnant and nobody knows whether the kid is Shane's or Rick's."

Carlin pressed her mouth into a thin line. Things certainly had gotten out of hand since they'd left. But then she glanced at Daryl and she couldn't help but smile. She was with him again; it didn't matter what else happened.

He seemed to have the same sentiment because he moved his hand from her thigh to her hand and gave it a squeeze. "I have really missed you, Carlin."

"I've missed you too." Her smile was broader than it had been in a very long time. Things could only get better from here.

Shane's open-topped jeep - which must have been freezing given the weather and the time of year - led the way to a small clearing off the highway. They were in the Smoky Mountains by this point, and there were many campgrounds presumably free of any dead ones. Carlin was actually more worried about bears.

The pickup truck rolled to a stop behind the church van and, without turning the engine off, Daryl leaned over and pressed his lips fiercely to Carlin's, oblivious to the sleeping child in her arms. His hands cupped her face, deepening the kiss. They might have continued if Nary hadn't walked by at that moment and rapped on the glass cheerfully with her knuckles. It was then that Carlin, Daryl, and Betsy climbed out of the car.

The tall man in the patrol officer's uniform approached them almost immediately. "Hey there." He extended his hand warmly. "I'm Rick Grimes, Lori's husband. She filled me in about you on the ride up here. You're welcome to stay with us as long as you'd like. We'd be happy to have you."

Shane, standing next to him, looked miffed but said nothing. Well of course he'd be miffed, Carlin thought to herself. He could no longer sleep with this man's wife.

They didn't bother setting up camp, knowing they'd only be there for a night, two at most. They built up a campfire to cook what was left of their food and official introductions were made.

The large black man sitting beside Carol was introduced as Tyrese, a former football player and used car salesman. He was sitting quite close to Carol, even though her husband hadn't been dead for long. The sixteen year old girl beside him, with dreadlocks and a wide nose, was introduced as his daughter Julie. Carlin might have worried about Ryan and his teenage hormones, but Julie's boyfriend Chris was with them, and the two looked very close. Ryan would just have to stick to his hand.

Nobody mentioned the obvious faces that were missing.

They welcomed the children into the group with genuine joy. So many kids had been lost when the outbreak started that they were treasured more than ever now. Carl, Sophia, Ben, and Billy were eager to play with Betsy and Grant, making friends almost immediately.

The college boys from the RV were welcomed with less enthusiasm. Luke in particular seemed to have made a bad first impression, so the Atlanta survivors regarded him with a cool politeness that wasn't overtly obvious right at first.

"So tell us what happened after you left us," Lori repeated once they were all seated around the fire, huddled together and wrapped in blankets to ward of the chill of the evening. Their supper had been meager and they were all still hungry, especially the children, so they tried to distract themselves by talking.

So talk they did. Carlin, Nary, and Kiri told the group of their adventures up in New Harmony, how they'd come across the warehouse survivors and then lost them in the department store mishap. Then they told of how they'd traveled back to the abandoned rock quarry outside of Atlanta only to find it abandoned, how they'd gone on to what they assumed was a dead end at the CDC.

The Atlanta survivors in turn told their own story, of the attack on the camp not long after the girls had left for Indiana, of the fiasco at the CDC, of the adventure at Wiltshire Farms where they had lost Donna to the dead ones. By the time they finished exchanging tales, it was time for bed.

The survivors from Atlanta, instead of setting up their tents every night, had been sleeping in their vehicles. For the most part, they were fairly adaptable for sleeping. The only vehicles that weren't were the open jeep that Shane drove and the pickup truck that Daryl drove. Shane and Daryl had been sleeping in Dale's RV with him and Andrea. It was just accepted that Carlin would sleep there too now. The twins slept in the other RV with the kids and the college boys.

Carlin was exhausted as she allowed Daryl to lead her into the RV after Dale and Andrea. It seemed that after all the months of waiting, the relief of finally finding him alive had completely drained her. She could think of nothing better than to crawl into bed with him and sleep forever.

Dale's RV had an almost identical layout as the college boys', with a bunk above the console and a table that converted to a bed and a large bed in the back room. Dale and Andrea obviously took the back room, and they were too old and private to welcome any sort of intrusion. Shane took the table-bed and Carlin and Daryl were left for the bunk above the console. Carlin was quite alright with this, as it was far more private than the table-bed anyway.

She snuggled into Daryl's embrace, fitting perfectly into the natural curve of his body as if she'd never been away. She was content for the first time in months as she drifted into a dreamless sleep.

**In the comic, Carol ends up with Tyrese, and I like that A LOT better than her being with Daryl, so I'm keeping it that way lol! Nevermind the fact that Tyrese doesn't exist in the tv show! Anyway, like I've said before, I'm following the comic-line rather than the television show-line (except for the whole Daryl Dixon haha) so it may sync up with the show at some parts and it may be completely different at others. I hope you enjoy it anyway! **


	13. Chapter 13

**Sorry for the hiatus guys! My hubby and I moved into our first house and it's taken us this long to get internet! **

**Valerie E. Mackin: I haven't actually watched much of season 2 after the mid-season finale, so I haven't seen that episode yet. I really need to buckle down and watch it. But they go to the prison in the comic so I know about it from that. **

**SaraLostInes: yay! I know I hated all the chapters where they were apart! Sometimes I feel like I want to write something one way and the next thing I know it's written itself completely different. I sometimes feel that my fingers have a mind of their own...**

**eloquent dreams: haha yeah all the frat boys sort of annoyed me. Even the ones that were nice. I think that's me judging all frat boys lol**

**SharonH: yay!**

**Azalia Fox Knightling: what, about Daryl and Carol hooking up? They can't! If for no other reason than the fact that their names rhyme lol**

Unfortunately the blissful honeymoon stage of their reunion was cut short by their circumstances. It became achingly clear to Carlin and her friends that the Atlanta survivors' food supply had dwindled to nearly nothing. They ate no more than once a day, and no more than a can of fruit or vegetables each. Without Merle, Daryl was the only one with any real hunting experience, but because of the weather even he had been unlucky on his hunting trips.

Carlin, the twins, and their new family had been with the group for a week and a half when tragedy struck. Rick and Tyreese had gone hunting, taking little Carl Grimes with them. They hadn't been gone long at all when there was a gunshot from somewhere in the direction they had gone.

Carlin, who had been sitting elbow-deep in a basin of freezing, soapy water trying to wash some clothes, looked up sharply. Nary, sitting beside her in an identical position, did the same.

"What do you think?" Nary asked, blowing a loose strand of blond hair of her forehead. "A dead one or some food?"

Carlin shrugged. She sincerely hoped it was some food. Her grumbling stomach hoped so too.

Nary didn't have time to speculate, however. Tyreese came barreling into the clearing where they had set up camp, looking nothing short of panicked.

"Tyreese!" Lori exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "We heard the shot. Did you guys get something or-!" She stopped suddenly, realizing that her husband and son were conspicuously absent. "Where are they? What happened? _Where are they_?"

"Some guy thought we were zombies... He shot at us! Carl was hit but he's okay. Rick and this guy are taking Carl back to some farm so another guy can help him. He's okay though... he's just... they're going to-"

"Where are they at? Where?" Lori grabbed the front of Tyreese's jacket frantically.

The big black man beckoned to the vehicles. "It's up the road from here! I know the way! Let's go!"

It took them only about five minutes to completely pack up their camp again; it didn't matter that Carlin and Nary had to throw the wet clothes into Dale's RV still dripping and slightly soapy. Then Carlin grimly climbed into the pickup truck with Daryl and Betsy, who had attached herself to the happy couple almost like surrogate parents.

"Do you think Carl will be okay?" Carlin asked worriedly as the pickup truck pulled out behind the church van.

Daryl shrugged, his mouth set in a grim line. "Don't know. What kind of dumbass would mistake a kid for a walker?"

Carlin didn't answer, but internally she agreed with him.

It didn't take them long to reach the farm in question. It was starting to warm up and some of the snow had begun to melt, especially on the asphalt. The caravan of vehicles pulled up outside the fence surrounding the property and Lori was the first one out. Luckily for them Rick, with blood smeared across his shirt, had just come out of the house with a dazed expression on his face.

"Rick!" Lori shouted, catching her husband's attention. "Where is he? Where's Carl? Is he okay?" She flung herself into his arms without waiting for an answer.

"This guy's working on him. He seems to know what he's doing. I think he's stopped the bleeding, at least." Rick wrapped his arms around his distraught wife.

"Oh Rick," Lori sobbed. "What are we going to do?"

"I don't know, Lori. I just don't know."

It was at that moment that another man came out onto the porch, wiping blood off his hands. The man was tall and distinguished despite a weathered face. "I've gotten him patched up," the man explained. "I pulled the bullet out of him and I stopped the bleeding. He was real lucky. The bullet lodged in his shoulder blade... Must've come in at exactly the right angle. Had the bullet been a little more determined, it could have gone right into his lung...had that happened...I wouldn't have been able to do a whole lot of anything for him. He's still out, but I think he'll be okay. All we can do at this point is just wait and see."

"Thanks mister," Rick said in a relieved voice, shaking the man's hand. "I really-"

"Name's Hershel Greene," the man interrupted. "Don't thank me just yet. Your time would be better put to use praying for the boy. I ain't had a prayer answered in a good solid few months...so I figure we're about due for something good."

While he had been talking, other people had meandered out of the house to stand around the man. "I'm Hershel. This is my farm," the man explained. "You guys are welcome to stay here while the boy gets better. We got plenty of food harvested - because, well, the markets closed - and really plenty of room. So you're all welcome to stay for the time being. Now, let me introduce you to the folks living here.

"This is Lacey, my eldest daughter." She was dark-haired and heavy-set but with a friendly expression that Carlin liked immediately.

"The one with the chip on his shoulder is my son Arnold." Arnold was heavy-set like his sister, but with a much harder expression. He wore his dark hair long and in a ponytail.

The next one was a girl in her early twenties, with the same dark hair. This one, however, had a mischievous twinkle in her eye. "My daughter Maggie's the one holding that chair down.

"My youngest son, Billy." This one was maybe sixteen or seventeen, with scruff on his cheeks and a bandanna tied around his head. He had rosy cheeks and a welcoming expression.

"Rachel and Susie here round out the pack. Susie's the one with the pigtails." The girls were identical twins, one with her dark hair in pigtails and the other with glasses perched on her nose.

"This is Otis and his girlfriend Patricia. They live up the road from here. Our place is safer than their place so they're staying with us until this whole thing blows over." Otis was a middle-aged redhead who wouldn't meet anyone's gaze and Patricia was a bottle-blond who looked more than a little white trash.

"That's about it for us here, aside from some critters running around outside," Hershel concluded. "Lacey, could you take them out and show them around the farm - let them get acquainted with the place? I want to check on the boy, make sure everything is okay."

Lacey rolled her eyes. "Sure. Whatever."

"I-uh- Billy, Ben, and I are going to sit this one out," Allen said glumly. Carlin had noticed that the once jovial man had withdrawn completely from the rest of the group, hardly speaking and never smiling. The loss of his wife to the dead ones must have affected him very strongly. "I'm just not up to it."

Lacey talked over him, as if she hadn't even heard him. "This is our yard... if you'll follow me around back I'll show you our backyard." The sarcasm in her voice was unmistakeable.

Andrea, at least, had heard Allen. She turned around with a gentle expression. "They can still come. I'll keep an eye on them, Allen. I'm sure they'll wanna see the cows."

"Yeah, I wanna see cows!" Ben shouted, rushing down the steps after the rest of the group. His twin followed on his heels.

"That's fine. Go with Andrea, boys." Allen could barely muster up the will to say that much.

Lacey's tour of the farm was brief and then they all drifted off on their own, grateful for a little bit of privacy. Carlin found herself beside a field with Daryl. Betsy, for once, had gone to play with the other children. Susie and Rachel seemed to welcome the children with open arms; even Lauren, who was finally with kids closer to her own age, had begun to open up a bit.

Daryl and Carlin didn't talk, just stood there together in the freezing February afternoon. Carlin thought she could feel Luke's angry gaze on her from somewhere far away but she ignored it and before long it disappeared.

It seemed Hershel knew what he was doing when it came to surgery, because Carl woke up about an hour later and seemed just fine. And then it was dinnertime and they all gathered around an enormous table in an even bigger kitchen that they all somehow managed to fit around.

"I'm impressed, Hershel," Rick said as they ate, really ate, for the first time in forever. "I've got to say, you've really got quite the setup here. I think I know how you felt when you first ran into us with all our canned goods, Tyreese."

"Gotta say, pal, this guy's got me a little bit more impressed," Tyreese grinned from his seat between Sofia and Maggie Greene. "At this rate, I think the next guy I run into is going to have a four star restaurant set up in his mansion."

After dinner had been eaten and Carlin, Nary, and Kiri had helped Maggie and Lacey do the dishes, they all wandered outside for a walk in the last wintry light. They had just caught up with the rest of the group when they heard Hershel and Rick arguing loudly.

"_Killing them_!" Hershel was shouting, waving his arms wildly. "You've just been killing them?"

Rick was just as angry. "We're putting them out of their misery _and_ keeping them from killing us! Those things aren't human. They're undead monsters. They're trying to eat us for god's sake!"

"You don't know why! You don't even know what's wrong with them!" Hershel growled. "Nobody does! We don't know a damn thing about what happened or what's going on."

"I know those things are trying to kill us - and that the less of them there are out there the safer we'll be! And I know it's not smart to have a mess of them pinned up not thirty feet from your goddamn house!"

That's when it all became clear to Carlin. She'd been wondering what that smell was. When she looked around, she found that they were standing in front of the barn, which had been barred up quite effectively. There was the sound of shuffling from inside and the stench was quite potent. She was glad the children were still playing up at the house.

"We should go in that barn right now and shoot every goddamn one of them in the head," Rick asserted fiercely. "It's not safe for them to be here! We need to kill them before they kill us!"

"My son is in there, god dammit!" Hershel roared.

Rick seemed to falter. "Your son?"

Hershel regained control of his emotions and his voice lowered considerably. "Shawn was bitten. It was before we put up the barrier around the house. I-I couldn't help him. He died after a couple days and turned into one of them. I didn't know what else to do, so I kept Shawn in the barn. He tried to attack us, to kill us, but I couldn't kill him. I couldn't bring myself to do that. When we found others, we just...we kept them too."

Rick rubbed his temples wearily. "Hershel, I'm really sorry. I truly am. I can't imagine what you've been going through. If I had lost Carl... I don't-I don't know what I would have done. I don't think I could live without my son. But you've got to listen to me, Hershel." He put a hand on their host's shoulder. "That thing in the barn...it's _not_ your son."

Hershel slapped the hand away angrily. "Get your fucking hand off me!" he roared. "Not my son? What made you such a goddamn expert? I don't know about you but the zombies around here didn't come with a fucking instruction manual! We don't know a goddamn thing about them. We don't know what they're thinking, what they're feeling. We don't know if it's a disease or side effects of some kind of chemical warfare! We don't know shit! For all we know, these things could wake up tomorrow, heal up, and be completely normal again! We just don't know! You could have been murdering all those people you _put out of their misery_."

"They're dead," Rick said sharply. "Before they get back up, before they try to eat you, they die. You said you saw your son die. He's dead. Those things are rotting corpses with pieces missing. They're not sick people. They're dead."

Hershel sighed heavily. "Rick, listen. These things could be in the early stages of recovery. They could be healing. And that's why things aren't working right. This is all completely unknown to us. We've got no clue how to handle this. I don't want to have blood on my hands if we find out these people are alive."

"No!" Rick snapped. "They're dead! I've seen those things with their damn guts hanging out. What you're saying doesn't make a damn bit of sense!"

Tyreese decided to intercede at this point, for which Carlin was grateful. She hadn't realized but they had all gathered to watch the spectacle like it was some sort of reality television show. She was embarrassed to have been caught watching.

"Rick!" Tyreese said. "We're guests here, man. We aren't making the rules. Just stop this."

"You're right, Tyreese. Sorry." Rick sighed and turned back to Hershel. "How many do you have in there?"

Hershel hesitated. "Fourteen. We had to raid nearby houses for supplies...blankets, kerosene, and whatnot. All our neighbors had turned. It's mostly them and their kids...and a couple who had wandered onto the property. They can't get out of the barn. We've got them locked up tight. We're completely safe here. You don't have to worry."

"If you say so. I'm trusting you on this one." Rick didn't sound happy about it. "I hope you're right." He turned and walked away, effectively ending the argument.

Carlin, feeling awkward and intrusive, tugged Daryl's arm and the two of them escaped to behind the house, where they had at least a little bit of privacy. They hadn't had a chance to be intimate since they had been reunited, and it was starting to strain both of them.

Daryl wasted no time with words when they were safely hidden behind the house, pinning her to the wall and attacking her neck with his lips and teeth. She was horny, she couldn't deny that, but she also didn't want to get caught by any of the children, and there were an awful lot of them running around these days.

"Can you believe that guy?" she asked, trying to distract her earnest lover. "Keeping those things locked up right there? He's smart enough to patch Carl up after he got shot but he's not smart enough to kill the damn things."

Daryl gave up on trying to seduce her and leaned against the wall beside her. "He's a fucking nut, that's what. I say we go in there while he's asleep and kill every last one of those things."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't be an ass, Daryl. Like Tyreese said, we're guests. I mean, this guy did feed us and is letting us stay here. We can't just disobey him like that."

He snorted in response. She could tell it annoyed him having to take orders from anybody. She nuzzled up into the natural curve his body made, feeling his body heat, and he wrapped his arms around him.

"Guess we're stuck sleeping in the RV tonight. _Again_," she grumbled into his chest.

He looked down at the top of her head. "What do you mean? I thought this Hershel guy was gonna put us up?"

"He doesn't have enough room in his house. He's got all those kids and neighbors already," Carlin answered. "We're supposed to be sleeping in our vehicles still." She saw that he was about to complain so she hurried on. "He's feeding us, remember? We were on the brink of starvation and he's feeding us."

Daryl grimaced but didn't press the matter. He really was growing up, she thought to herself.

**So when I wrote this, I was basing it off what happened in the comic, but they actually sort of kept this storyline for the the show, so it may overlap for a bit. The characters are slightly different and there are more that weren't brought out for the show. I hope things aren't too confusing! **


	14. Chapter 14

Carlin slept late the following morning, so she was alone in her bunk when she woke up, tangled in the sheets in nothing but one of Daryl's t-shirts and a pair of panties. She rolled over and cast a quick eye through the RV. Daryl was the only one there, sitting at the table (it was no longer a bed) with a cup of coffee.

"Good morning," she mumbled as she climbed down from the bunk, stepping on the back of the driver's seat on her way down.

Daryl leaned back to get a good view of her rear, quite visible in her panties. "I'll say," he grinned.

"Perv," she accused, reaching for her jeans and shimmying into them. "Where is everyone?"

Daryl set down his coffee cup. There was actually steam coming from the top. She'd have to get herself one of those. "The lawman is teaching some of the younger ones how to shoot a gun."

Carlin hesitated halfway through putting on her bra on underneath the t-shirt. She half-turned to him, panicked.

"Yeah, Ryan and Lauren are with them, but so are Nary and Kiri," Daryl answered before she could even ask. "That lawman won't let anything happen to them."

Carlin exchanged the oversized t-shirt for a clean one that fit a little bit better. "Let's go join them," she suggested. "No offense, but I don't particularly trust Nary with kids."

Daryl shrugged and the two of them pulled on their coats and left the RV. It was much warmer today; the snow had all but disappeared.

"You about ready?" Rick was asking as they approached, surreptitiously holding hands. "I'm giving you guys some low caliber guns so they'll be a little easier to handle."

"Let's do it!" Chris said eagerly, a semi-automatic in his hand.

Julie, standing as always at his side, nodded her eager agreement. "Yeah, this'll be fun!"

"This isn't a game, Julie. This is serious stuff," Tyreese said grimly. "You listen to Rick and do everything he says."

"She knows, man," Chris sneered. "You don't have to worry. We're taking this seriously."

Tyreese aimed his own gun. "Good to know. Thanks, Chris." And he fired off several rounds. Every bullet hit his target, a tin can sitting atop the fence post. It fell to the ground, suddenly decimated.

"Nice one, man," Rick smiled.

Tyreese grinned back. "Thanks, but my teacher deserves all the credit."

"Whoa, whoa!" Hershel shouted, running up to them from the house. "Stop shooting! Stop right now!"

Rick held up his hand for everyone to cease fire. "What's the problem, Hershel?"

"The Thompson's house is just on the other side of that tree line!" their host exclaimed. "Your bullets are probably ripping right through their house! You can't keep firing in that direction!"

"Jeez, sorry about that," Rick scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "I had no idea. The Thompson's, huh? They, uh...Are they in your barn?"

Hershel glowered. "That's not the point! I don't want their house to be destroyed! You can't just-"

"That's not what I meant. I didn't-" Rick began, but he stopped when Hershel's face went from angry to shocked. "What? What's going on?" He turned and saw exactly _what_. It was a dead one, missing it's left arm entirely. It was dressed for summer even though it was February. "Oh. Damn." He raised his gun. "I think I can get it from here."

"No!" Hershel shouted. "I can't let you shoot him. There's only one...He'll be easy to get into the barn."

Rick hung his head. "Jesus."

"I've done this a few times before, you know," Hershel muttered. "They're only really dangerous when there's more than one. Go over there and get his attention."

Rick sighed but did as he was told. "Over here, ugly!"

Hershel moved up behind the dead one and grabbed its remaining arm and its head. "Got you!"

"Looks like you've got your own little system," Rick said, sounding begrudgingly appreciative.

"Piece of cake," Hershel muttered. "Lacey, Arnold...I'm going to need your help getting him in the barn. Go around back and distract the others while I throw this one in." While the group of Atlanta survivors watched, Hershel, his son, his daughter, and the dead one moved towards the barn. While Lacey and Arnold moved around to the back, out of view, Hershel unlocked the main door. As soon as the lock was removed, the door slammed open and a rather portly dead one came tumbling out. Hershel stumbled backwards and released the dead one he'd been holding.

"Oh shit! Hershel!" Rick yelled.

"_Dad_!" Arnold yelled from the loft inside the barn as the assembled dead ones made straight for Hershel, lying helpless on the ground. "I'm coming, Dad!" And he and Lacey launched themselves down from the loft as Rick came rushing to the rescue.

"Oh god!" Hershel panted. "Oh, please god!"

"No!" Arnold shouted, body-slamming the dead one next to his father.

"Lori! Kiri!" Rick barked as he ran. "Make sure all the kids are in the house and keep them there! Stay inside! Chris! Julie! Into the house with Lori and Kiri!"

Arnold punched the dead one repeatedly. "No! Not my father!" he shouted. "Not my father!" That's when another dead one bit a hole through his neck.

"Arnold!" Lacey screamed, rushing forward.

"Shawn, no!" Hershel reached for the dead one chomping on Arnold. "Please, son! He's your brother! Don't do this! You've got to remember!"

"Daddy!" Maggie shrieked, rushing up with her gun drawn, Glenn hot on her heels.

"Maggie, stop!" Glenn begged, but she ignored him. Carlin, Nary, and Daryl drew their own weapons and joined the bloodbath as Lacey was overwhelmed and eaten.

With all of them working together, it didn't take long to dispose of the remainder of the dead ones. Hershel himself put bullets through the brains of his children. "I'm sorry, Shawn. I'm sorry, Arnold." He put the barrel of his gun against his temple. "I'm sorry."

"Hershel, no!" Rick shouted, slapping the gun away.

There was a pause, and then Hershel fell to his knees, sobbing. "I'm so sorry."

They buried Hershel's three deceased children that afternoon, decorating the graves with simple wooden crosses. As they stood there in silence, Hershel turned to Rick with tears coursing down his cheeks. "You were right," he said simply.

"You knew it was going to happen," Daryl muttered bitterly as the group slowly went their separate ways, eventually leaving only Hershel and his remaining children at the graves of Shawn, Arnold, and Lacey. "He was being an idiot."

Carlin was surprised by the bitterness in his voice, and then she realized his thoughts were probably on Meryl. She wondered again just what had happened while she'd been away. So instead of saying something, she simply slipped her hand in his. His fingers clamped around hers moodily.

**Again, this is sort of what happened in the show, but more what happened in the comic. In the show they left out most of Hershel's kids... Anyway I hope you enjoyed! **


	15. Chapter 15

**I am so sorry for the long hiatus! Please forgive me!**

It was around midmorning the three weeks later when all hell broke loose. Carlin was sitting in the yard, enjoying the warmth of the morning with Kiri, where they were keeping an eye on the children playing together.

"Lori, don't!" Rick's voice shouted as he and his wife came out of the RV parked by the fence.

Lori, of course, ignored him. She always seemed a little hard-headed, especially since becoming pregnant. "Hey!" she shouted at Hershel, who had just come out of the barn. "You're throwing us out? Why? What the hell did we do, dammit? How can you let us stay here for weeks and then just turn us away?"

Kiri got to her feet, which was a difficult and slow process since she was nearly nine months pregnant by this point. She rested a hand on her belly, frowning.

Hershel looked at Lori with something akin to contempt. "I never invited you to live here. I'm letting you stay here while your son heals," he muttered. "I don't have enough food to feed all of us long-term. I have to look out for my family."

"You mean by keeping a damn barn full of zombies next door?" Lori shouted. "Or do you mean you're going to _start_ looking out for your family from now on? If we hadn't been here - and given you our extra guns - you'd all be dead right now! But you're going to kick us out?"

"What do you _want_ from me?" Hershel roared. "I save your boy's life and I lost two of my own. Haven't I given you enough?"

Lori was angrier than Carlin had ever seen her. "We didn't kill your kids! If anyone here is responsible for that it's you and your stupidity!"

"You've run your mouth enough, woman!" Hershel yelled, raising his hand to hit Lori right in the face. Carlin and Kiri exchanged worried looks.

"Dad, no!" Maggie screamed, making Carlin jump. She hadn't noticed Maggie and Glenn come out onto the porch.

And suddenly Rick was between them. "That's enough!" he declared.

Hershel pushed him away. "Don't you fucking touch me!" he snarled.

Lori was livid. "You were going to hit me? What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"I lost three kids, you stupid bitch! Three!" Hershel was out of control now. "Today I find one of you fucking my daughter!" Carlin glanced at Glenn and Maggie, both of whom look terribly guilty all of a sudden. "Then your husband is asking to take my kids' rooms! And now you're on my ass because I won't let you free-loaders eat all my damn food and fill up my house! Where the hell do you get off? This is _my_ fucking house. I have a family to look after. I don't owe you shit!" He turned and stalked off, muttering, "I don't owe you shit."

Rick frowned, stopping him. "We never said you did, Hershel. We thought you were letting us stay here. You never mentioned this being temporary, goddamn it. Do you have any idea what it's like out there? Hunting for food? Cramming into our vehicles? Getting attacked by those monsters at every goddamn turn?"

"Not my problem," Hershel grunted. "I've got to look out for my kids."

"What about _our_ kids?" Lori pressed. "You've got a fence, a house. You're safe here. We could help you grow more food in the summer. We could make it work! We could have a life here! You can't just send us back out there. We could die! You're sentencing us to death! You can't do this!"

Rick wrapped his arms around his overly-emotional wife. "Lori, please," he begged. "It's going to be okay."

And then Hershel was pointing his gun at Rick's head. "I want you out of here," he declared in a deadly voice. "_Right now_."

"Hershel, what the fuck?" Otis exclaimed, slapping Hershel's hand away.

"I want them to leave, Otis." Hershel's voice was no longer out of control. "Everything went to hell after they came. We were doing fine before they got here. They fucked everything up."

"Fine," Rick said coolly. "We'll leave. We're leaving."

Hershel grunted and stalked back into the house.

Rick glanced at the rest of the group. "Get ready," he barked.

Carlin scooped Betsy - her unofficially adopted daughter by this point - into her arms and went in search of Daryl. She found him sitting with Shane in the kitchen; they weren't talking to one another but they weren't arguing either.

"We're leaving," she informed the two, setting Betsy down in one of the chairs so she could pack up some food.

Shane and Daryl exchanged a surprised look. "What? Why?" Shane demanded.

"Hershel freaked out," Carlin muttered. "He almost hit Lori in the face and nearly shot Rick. He's kicking us out. We've got to get out of here."

It took them about thirty minutes to gather up all their belongings and meet up by their vehicles.

"You say goodbye to that girl?" Rick asked Glenn as they got the children all loaded up in the cars.

Glenn shook his head, his hands shoved deep in his pockets. "No."

"No?" Rick repeated. "What do you mean?"

"I'm not going," Glenn explained. "I'm in love, Rick. Or as close as I'm liable to get. I don't know if I'll ever find another woman like Maggie. She talked it over with her father...he said it's okay. I'm not leaving."

"Oh, Glenn..." Rick muttered. "I...uh..."

"I think part of the reason I didn't have any problems running into Atlanta for supplies was because I didn't really care if I lived or died," Glenn continued. "I was scared, but I didn't care that I was scared. I think I almost wanted to die, just to get it over with. I don't feel that way now. Not with Maggie. I gotta stay, Rick. I don't want to feel like that anymore. I don't want to be alone."

"No, Glenn. I completely understand," Rick smiled. "I want you to be happy."

"I _am_ happy. I didn't think it was possible, but I am." Glenn was grinning.

Carlin climbed into the pickup truck then, cutting off the remainder of the conversation. Daryl peered over the steering wheel.

"What's going on with the chink?" he muttered.

"He's going to stay here with Maggie," Carlin answered, propping her feet up on the dusty dashboard. It was actually hot inside the truck; the March sun was streaming through the windshield relentlessly. She stripped off her jacket and shoved it under the seat. "And don't call him that."

"Chink!" Betsy clapped her hands together. "Chink!"

Carlin sighed heavily. "See what I mean?"

Daryl just chuckled and ruffled Betsy's hair, putting the pickup truck into drive.

**Eep! Sorry this chappy is short! I promise I'll do better in the future! Please review!**


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